I'm tempted by Nigel Farage !

Pretty good pension for not doing the job of MEP isn't it

Monster Raving Loony Party, Silverfish. They did quite well in the local elections in Devon years ago as far as I remember. Was that the time I voted for them

I have always voted for someone else each time there was an election because its so confusing. do we vote for the part that seems to do most for us such as older people voting for the party that promises better pensions or should we rise above and vote for the party that is better for the uk as a whole, I voted for conservative last time as I thought they would get us out of the economic mess. I haven't a clue who to vote for the next time. I also would like to see all parties being banned from name calling its so childish, surely they can each promise whatever they are going to do without knocking the other side. can anyone advise me

I wonder why Nick Clegg isn't getting an EU pension. Or is he/will he?

Perhaps he will when the likes of Kinnock,, Mandelson etc. etc.etc.etc.etc.

Your point is exactly why he is doing so well.

People are sick to the back teeth of political spin and my party is different to your party scenario.

It is simply what the EU system hands out. If you don't like it then vote against the EU not defend it as an institution.

A gravy train is a gravy train, jen, no matter which station it started from. Of course Mr Garbage would accept it, just as he takes full advantage of the EU's over-generous expenses.

Anyone else notice that Farage will get a pension of £41,000 fron the EU, whatever happens in these elections?
Do you think he'll give it up?

The point is photo's like that either real or not will do no harm to him, nor the other's because they are either going to be viewed as humerous, political spinning or trivia by most sensible people surely, dependant upon your like or dislike of the person involved.

I like Andrew Neils take on Forage, he is 'TEFLON COATED', nothing sticks to him no matter how hard people try.

As far as I am concerned, HollyDaze, 'smears' are allegations; the link I posted deals with facts about UKIP that are a matter of record.

Thanks, Ana.

I have quickly scanned the article posted by annodomini and it reads as a bog standard smear article and most of what was written could apply equally to any of the main parties. Question Time was a tad bit embarrassing for both Labour and Tory when a similar question was put to their representative on the panel last night.

Others will give their endorsement because they have come to despise the other parties and the establishment

That, imo, is what will give rise to success for UKIP.

You beat me to it grannyactivist; it does go to show what harm can be done to a person when others fail to research properly and just choose to believe the hype of the opposition.

i1.wp.com/michaelrawlins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/nils-jorgensen.png

Or even photoshopped!

The 'punk' NF is a photoshpped job.
www.buzzfeed.com/alanwhite/just-in-case-anyone-still-thinks-nigel-farage-was-a-punk-in

Not necessarily agreeing with Nigel's views, but even politicians were young and foolish once (with the possible exception of William Hague).
And it doesn't really look like Nigel.

Meanwhile, he has gone from the recycling bin to be recycled by the Council (as will all the others when they plop through my front door).

No way is the photo of NF genuine!

Just to mention in case someone missed the point, only the first photo is allegedly genuine; the rest are photoshop efforts by the journalist who wrote the article!!

UKIP are not competent to sort out the problems of British politics. These have caused a huge public sense of disillusionment with politics in general and many aspects of the conduct of the establishment. Charlatans outfits like UKIP who have no manifesto or experience of governing anything properly, even their own party, will only make things worse with their divisive rantings. I wish that it were otherwise but it ain't. I had great hopes for the Liberals until they ditched their scruples and got into bed with the Tories.

Stansgran

I don't like the 'Safe Seat' scenario. I agree it would keep them on their toes more.

I think it makes for lazy councils and MP's in some cases.

The biggest problem with a safe seat is in my opinion the need to 'keep the voter' in a state of what he/she expects their life to be. I will expand. If you live in the North it would appear that there is a repeated arguement , even on GN, that the North suffers from lack of employment and relies on welfare more than the South. I personally find that questionable but if we accept that is the case then Labour will want to 'keep that status quo' as that is where their core vote comes from. If things look up then the argument of the North South divide starts to decrease and the voter just might think beyond their stereotypical voting pattern or what their peer group has always voted for, namely Labour.

What I am trying to say, perhaps badly, is, all parties parachute in candidates into their safe seats who have no knowledge of the area, doesn't have to work for their votes and quite possibly is the worst candidate/council the voter will get.

Take the current hooha over Straw, Blair and Kinnock children, being parachuted into safe seats. Take the talk about Boris Johnson and the Newark election. All parties have the same outlook over the safe seat, it is tantamount to taking the rise out of the local electorate in my opinion.

The damn problem is, they all do it. They all will continue to do it. We, the voter will very rarely change our opinion because we do not have truly local knowledge of the person we are voting for as our MP in most cases, unless ofcourse they have been voted in for years and we know what they stand for. Even then do we change our mind?

Politics certainly is a game isn't it.

Every vote if it counts is a vote for the unknown as compromise and wheeler dealing come into the equation as soon as the electorate go back to their homes. I would vote for any party which made it compulsory to vote with a space on the voting paper to say that all candidates are a waste of space. Round where I live people are believed to vote for a monkey if it's wearing the right colour. I think it would be a great benefit to this part of the world if there were no safe seats. It would keep them on their toes and the north east would suddenly find jobs and opportunity thrust upon them.

Yes, thanks Ana, that's the one. The others in that article are amazing and surprising too - wow.

Whether you like UKIP or Nigel Farage or not, they are going to do very well in the next election. Why! Because whether or not you agree with what he says or stands for he is simply chiming with the public.

Now I think there are some who would consider anybody who votes for UKIP as the 'Great Unwashed Public' but that is not the case. He is taking votes from all parties and all classes.

I have said before, I would not for UKIP as they do not take part in voting in the European Parliament, just cause trouble. They have some good ideas that I agree with, e.g. I too consider that immigration should be on merit not through free movement of nations. I also believe that many UKIP supporters, like those who detest UKIP believe, they have a policy of closing the door on immigration. This is both scaremongering by the haters and an Ill perceived notion of what UKIP policies are by the UKIP voter who does not listen to what Farage says. He does not advocate a total ban on immigration and it is a lie to say he does.

The rise of the 'Nationalist' parties, I do not call them far right anymore as I have never thought that was true, is gaining a hell of a momentum. Why! Because the public in many countries are sick of poor governance by both their own governments and the European government.

I watched a report on BBC News today. They were doing a report on the EU. It summed it up to me. They were in Portugal where, like us in the UK, they are going through an austerity programme. Public Sector jobs and wages were cut etc. They are disillusioned with their government for getting them into the mess and the EU Parliament equally. Then they went to Poland. Today is the 10th anniversary of Poland joining the EU. They love it. Why wouldn't they??? They have received handouts from the EU, us included, that have made their standard of living better and their economy grow.

As they say in the report. It is a tale of 2 Europe's.

As for being in or out of Europe I for one am tempted by out if it does not address the obvious move to being a Federal State. I would not have that thought had the initial negotiations which intended it to be a trading policy had still been in place.

The EU Parliament is too me a dangerous, devisive organisation as it it is today.

Instead of having wars it is proving 'The pen is mightier than the sword' and we are loosing our identity and right of self governance, that is why I am tempted to vote to bail out before it is too late.

@Ana - Seven years ago I was operated on for lung cancer, so I am not completely lacking in experience of that disease (or on fact those diseases). My original comment was, as I am sure you know really, rhetorical - since the situation could never arise, I could do the cause of cancer research no harm by not voting for Doctor Crock and his Crackpots.

At least the Monster Raving Loony Party has a sense of humour...

Thank goodness we can still vote as we like, NanKate, so if you are tempted to vote for UKIP that is your right. But be aware, UKIP represents a vote for the unknown. They have no real policies or experience of government, they just prey on people's genuine fears and disillusionment with politics. Be careful, though, the garrulous Nigel Farage is like a snake-oil doctor with a quick cure for all ills. UKIP'S record at the EU is disgraceful. They take EU money and play no part in EU proceedings. Their chosen role is to be destructive to the organisation of which they are part. The worry is that UKIP is not just a rather ludicrous irrelevance. There are unfortunate precedents of extreme political organisations that whipped up people's fears and pointed the finger of blame at minorities. In the quite recent past it cost Europe dear to clean up its act after the terrible consequences of such activities and I would not want to contribute to anything that threatened to repeat those awful mistakes. But who you vote for is up to you, NanKate, and long may you continue to enjoy that right.

Is this the photo you meant, granjura?

blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tomchiversscience/100268896/nigel-farage-the-punk-and-other-photos-the-politicians-dont-want-you-to-see/