How do you decide how to vote?

Anyone who watched "This is going to hurt" last night saw a very good reason for not voting Tory. For those that didn't, the character, Adam Kay was working in a private maternity hospital. The woman whose baby he was delivering was very sniffy about the NHS and what good treatment she had received in this hospital, costing £14k. After the birth something was wrong. Adam sprang into action calling for all the support that he needed - medicine, anaesthetist, etc.etc.

None was forthcoming and the woman was rushed to an NHS hospital as an emergency.

In real life this is not uncommon.

It must surely depend to some extent on local realities. Does the party you’d prefer to support have a cat in hell’s chance? Here it’s invariably a toss up between LD/Tory (currently LD) - Labour and Green come nowhere.

I’d never not vote, but I can recall one distant occasion when I was so disillusioned with the lot of them that I voted for the Monster Raving Loony candidate, instead.

I’m a floating voter, I vote on national issues, “who I think is going to do the best for the UK as a whole”

Not that it makes any difference there is a massive Tory majority here that will never be overturned

Ha ha! Yes, of course …?
Perhaps try it without using my link

I got ads that cut the lefthand side of the questions off . So I didn't bother.

P.S. FannyC. With respect, I think you got a 'sliver' of an ad. Snakes slither..

Seabreeze and Callistemon
No problems (on my phone)
Just a slither of an ad at the bottom of the screen
Sorry about that

greenlady102

GrannyGravy13

greenlady102

GrannyGravy13

In an ideal world all political parties should be legally bound to implement their manifestos, cannot see that happening anytime soon.

That would be difficult because stuff happens...like covid.

Difficult yes impossible I don’t think so.

For instance this Government had no increase to taxes in their manifesto, they are raising NI next month.

but that is because of all the covid expenditure. Where did you think the money would come from?

The covid expenditure came from money created by the Bank of England. It wasn't 'borrowed' from anyone. It doesn't have to be 'paid back' to anyone. We have what is known as a sovereign currency. We don't use any other country's currency for transactions in the UK. This means that our money is issued by our government on our behalf and the country can never run out of money.

The insistence that it has to be recouped by taxation is either a con trick or the economic illiteracy of those supposed to be in charge of our economy.

If voters weren't constrained by this mistaken belief they might make better choices when deciding who to vote for.

As few politicians of any party understand this basic fact of how money gets into the economy I have to go for whichever party proposes to spend our money in a way which benefits all sections of our society, not just put more into the hands of the already wealthy. And ignore the ignorant 'How are you going to pay for it?', or 'The country can't afford it' based objections.

I did Seabreeze
I couldn't read the full questions.

Fannycornforth .Tried to do this political quiz. Found it almost impossible because of the constant adverts either side of the questions and answers. Did you have the same problem.

GrannyGravy13

greenlady102

GrannyGravy13

In an ideal world all political parties should be legally bound to implement their manifestos, cannot see that happening anytime soon.

That would be difficult because stuff happens...like covid.

Difficult yes impossible I don’t think so.

For instance this Government had no increase to taxes in their manifesto, they are raising NI next month.

but that is because of all the covid expenditure. Where did you think the money would come from?

I look at the candidates standing for election and read what each has to say. I also check the manifesto of the various parties, and (if applicable) the records of what they have achieved against what has been promised.
There is always some "disconnect" I.e. some difference between what I would ideally like the stated aims to be - and I try to go with the Party and Candidate that mostly closely represents the things I believe in.
I live in a very rural area, and have done so ever since my retirement in 2007. Very few Parties/Candidates actually do good things for rural areas (far more voters live in towns and cities) - so I also judge on those who fight to improve life in rural areas.
I regularly write to my local MP's (I have two, since I live in Scotland) and their responses, regardless of Party, play a big part in who I choose to vote for (or not, as the case may be).

Annie1, “A woman is a female adult, and in addition a trans woman is a woman. So that’s my view.” This from Keir Starmer a couple of days ago.

This statement will have an influence on how/whether or not I’ll vote next time.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

I do rather wish that our political system allowed some of the smaller parties, and especially those with greener credentials (not just The Green Party) to get a bit more of a look in at election time. On the whole, although I know that it is probably a wasted vote in general elections, locally I almost always vote for an independent, because on the whole they actually DO understand the local issues much better than any ‘party-driven’ so-called ‘professional’ politician.

The Tories are the political wing of the elite - they give just enough to just enough people to keep themselves in power - wish I could remember who said that - anyone know?

Capitalism only works if everyone benefits and that doesn’t seem to have been the case for over 10 years. Wealth hasn’t just trickled upwards it has defied gravity.But then Tony Blair was never a true Labour man (New Labour??).

The quality of politicians is appalling, for some politics is a stepping stone to greater wealth and position.

If Screaming Lord Such were still alive and standing in my area I would vote for him - living in a blue baboon constituency I’d like to at least have a smile on my face when I vote. I will always vote - it took long enough for us creatures who are totally at the mercy of our floating wombs to be allowed to hold the pencil of decision.

In my younger days, I voted for all the major parties at different times - never feeling totally comfortable with it. I am basically socialist and believe in healthcare being free at the point of need, education being based on ability to learn not ability to pay, and progressive and fair taxes and benefits. I tend to vote based on the party's position and policies and past performance and not on the strengths of the individual (sometimes therefore maybe through gritted teeth!). Being in Scotland, I have voted SNP for the last 10-15 years as I believe the Scottish people have the right to decide what's best for our future and what we vote here doesn't influence UK-wide outcomes ( eg Brexit and Tory governments in Westminster). I would consider Alba or Green candidates too, depending on circumstances at the time. In an independent Scotland, I might vote labour if they got their act together and were not connected to UK labour party. If I lived in England, it would be a challenge, but I could not vote Tory again no matter where I lived - too right wing by far now.

I've just taken the test, too (thanks for the link, Fanny) and am utterly unsurprised to find that I am even more anti our current, corrupt government than I was before. I've yet to physically meet anyone who will admit to having voted them in.

No vote is wasted.The media always talk of overall vote for each party nationally, as well as constituency votes.

When we had the con/lib pact we were offered PR. It was voted down.
There were no alternatives to the option we were offered. As I understood it, all votes were counted even if there. were candidates who I would not vote for under any circumstances. No negative votes. It is a pity we do not have PR as I feel it removes the extremes from any of the parties. I would have the hope that it would make for a more balanced government. Does anyone else think we had more balance with the con/lib and the lib/lab pacts?
I would feel happier to be able to vote for parties like the Green Party and hope that my vote wouldn't be wasted

I dread elections but I always vote because I believe that if you don't vote they will eventually take that right away, especially if you're over 60. Problem is, none of the parties are the slightest bit interested in looking after the older generations. They try to be 'woke' because they think that will get the youth vote but the youth have better things to do. In the last seven years so so, they have become totally untrustworthy and corrupt. A bunch of 5 year olds could come up with better ideas.

Bluecat: I don't need to post here because you have said it all for me, 100%.
I will probably vote Libdem as an anti vote. Anything that has a chance that isn't tory.
We need proprotional voting badly, to find out what the people really think

I don't make a decision based on individual issues. I am a socialist, so I look for a party that has strong support for the welfare state, is committed to improving the living standards of ordinary people and particularly of the poor, and opposes discrimination in all forms. If they were pro-nationalisation, that would be the cherry on top but that seems to be a step too far for the major political parties.

When Jeremy Corbyn was leader of Labour, there was a political party which reflected my views. Well, part of it did, but there was a large faction in the PLP doing everything they could to undermine that vision. Now we're back to a Labour Party that wouldn't recognise socialism if the latter jumped up and bit it, and I shall have to vote for them because at least they aren't the Tories.

I have voted for the Greens a couple of times but they don't often stand here, and I have voted tactically for the Lib Dems once or twice. Never doing that again, after Nick Clegg presented us with a progressive manifesto and then went back on it all by hooking up with Cameron, just to get into power. I did like his ideas, though, before he abandoned them.

It's all academical, anyway, as I have lived all my life in a Tory stronghold. My vote has never made the slightest difference and our MP is useless. I emailed him about the Triple Lock and about more financial support to reduce the waiting lists for cancer operations, and he never bothered to answer.

I will argue against both main parties and have since before I could vote. So I voted Liberal until they became Liberal Democrats. I enjoyed the Clegg/ Cameron era I think a lot more got done. I vote for someone who actually lives in the area in local elections so can be any party ( never Conservative not the right area) However I voted Conservative at the last election as I couldn’t bear the thought of Corbin and I live in a marginal constituency.

I listen to the election programm of the party I have voted for all my life, and unless I disagree violently on some major point I vote for them.

Usually, I look at what the few other parties I might consider voting for are promising ( we have usually eleven or twelve parties in Parliament at one time in Denmark) but finish up voting as I always have done anyway.

I share the concerns about the response of various Labour spokespeople on defining who/what is a woman.

Im in a red wall constituency, lost by 400 votes by the Good Labour mp at the last election. Voting other than Labour or Conservative is a wasted vote. I won’t be voting Conservative.