Cleggie And The Next Coalition

[mikey4444]

I am listening to Cleggie being interviewed by Mr Humphrys.

He has just said the he will talk to the Party that has the most MP's, after the Election. So it appears that he WILL form a coalition with the largest Party, who ever they are. Lets hope its not UKIP.

[ToraToraTora]

so the Dave and Cleggie show then mikey. I am certain that the tories will be the largest party but I'm not sure if Clegg will have enough seats to filll a phone box so he will probably be irrelevant.

[mikey4444]

Morning TTT !

You may be right in your first assertion, although I think dave will not be ahead by very much, af at all. But in my opinion, you are being too harsh on Cleggie.

He is likely to be third after the SNP but he should still have enough MP's left to bargain with

[Deskdiary]

"If the SNP get the predicted 50+ seats, they will be able to take The Conservatives (or a second place Labour Party) over 326 seats. However, Sturgeon has ruled out putting the Conservatives in power, and Miliband has ruled out a deal with the SNP. I expect someone will have to change their mind, probably Miliband."

Milliband has made it quite clear on more than one occassion that there will not be a coalition with the SNP and there will not be any 'deals'. If Milliband does blink first and agree to either a coalition or a deal where the SNP support Labour, how will this affect his credibility?

I accept those of any hue will steal the pennies from a dead man's eyes to gain power (see Clegg as per the OP), but given he has unambiguously ruled out working with the SNP, I just can't see how he can subsequently agree a deal and maintain his credibility.

[mushroom25]

since most of the SNP's gains are likely to come at the expense of Labour (who were in the last parliament the biggest party in Scotland by a wide margin), how can Labour + SNP be expected to even approach 323?

[ichkeria]

The SNP in theory could have over 50 seats. Added to 280-odd Tory or Labour seats: well over the line. In theory

[New Judge]

"we came together in the national interest" was a load of old cobblers, jim.

The LibDems “came together” with the Tories for one reason, and one reason alone – to get the spare keys to No 10 that they could not have imagined in their wildest dreams. In 2010 they saw the chance for their 15 minutes of fame. Unfortunately for the electorate that 15 minutes stretched to five long years. Two (among many) of the most disastrous things they forced the Tories to do as a price for their votes in the Commons was to insist on the Fixed Term Parliament Act (which guaranteed them five years in government when in fact they would probably have been booted out in under 5 months) and to throw their toys out of the pram by refusing to agree to much needed Parliamentary Constituency Boundary reform.

The best option in the “national interest” in 2010 would have been for Mr Cameron to have had the courage to form a minority government, be voted down once or twice in the Commons and call a fresh General Election within a few months.

So it will be this time. If (and it’s a big if because it is by no means certain that the LibDems will win enough seats to be of any influence and it is also by no means certain that Mr Clegg will hold on to his in Sheffield) he is in a similar position this time they will do a deal with whomsoever gives them the opportunity for a seat or two around the Cabinet table and possibly (if Mr Salmond is not in the Coalition mix) the post of Deputy Prime Minister. I have no time for the SNP or the Sturgeon women (particularly because they were unfortunately unsuccessful in securing a "Yes" vote in th ereferendum) but at least they have laid their cards on the table and told the electorate what to expect if they become the kingmakers. No such honourable behaviour can be expected from the LDs.

All the while voters need to remember that whatever is determined, because of the ridiculous FTP Act, the country will be stuck with it for five years. It is very unlikely that MPs (especially those in marginal seats) will vote for a new election (two thirds majority required) or will support a vote of “No Confidence” (50% +1).

[mikey4444]

Can't argue with you there NJ ! Their only chance of power, and they snatched it up like a starving man would snatch up a stale crust.

[ichkeria]

Well I can argue
There were HUGE risks for the LibDems going into coalition with the Tories, most of which if not all have been borne out.

The trouble with being the minor partner in a coalition is that you get all the blame for the bad things and none of the credit for the good things. Lefties blame them for supping with the devil, the swivel-eyed amongst us damn them for holding back naked, right-wing Toryism.
As a Labour voter in 2010 I was cross with them for propping up the Tories, and also with the FTP act, but both were if not brilliant then understandable.
The last thing the country needed in 2010 was ANOTHER election, just like it doesn't need another one now. Two years of EU referendum campaign chaos will be bad enough.
And if the LibDems scuppered the boundary reform (and thank goodness they did, having seen some of the ridiculous new constituency plans in our area) the Tories savagely helped scupper AV. Trade-off.
The main (large) mistake was voting for tuition fees, but that is not something the political right can really complain about.
Anyway, it looks as though Sheffield Hallam's Tory voters might be about belatedly to repay Cleggie for "propping them up" these last few years if the latest poll there is to be believed :-)

[New Judge]

"...the Tories savagely helped scupper AV."

Er... I thought it was the electorate that did that, ichkeria.

The country needs a proper government who policies and actions are going to leave some people disappointed. It does not need some lily-livered mish-mash of politicans who are scared stiff of offending anybody with the end result that everybody (apart from the Scots, that is) gets what nobody wants. But it seems that's what we'll be stuck with for the next five years.

[ichkeria]

But New Judge the last election result was a lily livered mish mash of seats with no one getting an overall majority so a lily livered mishmash of a government seemed appropriate :-)
The electorate skippered AV of course but the Tories helped them on their way as they had every right to do of course, just as the LibDems ...

[ichkeria]

Scuppered :-)

[excelsior-1]

i gather that last time he would have preferred to form a coalition with labour, and did not want to join with the conservatives at all

[jourdain2]

Dispassionately - I think it will take a long, long time for the broken promise on university fees to be forgiven. If they form another coalition then there may well be other 'basic principles' which they have to forgo - and which will be remembered. I'm not a politician or anything like (T.G.) but it seems to me that it is a downwards spiral to extinction.