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Michael Martin has confirmed that he will indeed stand down as an MP. Not that this news is of any surprise, we all knew that he was going to do it, but now he has confirmed it, which now effectively means that the by-election is now 'officially' on!
He will step down as the MP on the same day as he resigns as Speaker - 21st June. This will give too options for Labour: Hold a quick, election in August OR slug it out and wait until September!
This is going to be a very interesting summer!
Wednesday 20 May 2009
Labour chief whip spills the beans on early election!
Apparently it's been revealed that the Labour chief whip has stated that the new speaker will "only be in the position for a few weeks before the election is called"! So does this mean that we are now looking at an early autumn election then? Of course, he could have been referring to the Glasgow North East by-election, but who knows, he may well be talking about a general election!
Talking about the by-election, latest info about the likely candidates. SNP candidate looks likely to be Councillor Grant Thoms, which would make sense seeing as he represents a wide area of the constituency in the council. Labour candidate looks likely not to be Paul Martin (Michael's son) so looks as if it's going to be Willie Bain, Michael Martins election agent.
Whoever the candidates are and no matter how good it looks for the SNP, I'm not taking anything for granted! At the moment, I think the SNP is probably ahead, but we won't know for sure until the campaign is properly underway and the voting actually takes place. The state of Labour, both locally and nationally, being in such a dire state certainly helps us, as does the fact that a lot of the Labour council school closures are in the area!
Labour sources have admitted that they don't believe they will win this one, but they said that before Glenrothes! Saying that, however, the situation has changed dramatically since Glenrothes and things are more favourable towards the SNP this time!
Talking about the by-election, latest info about the likely candidates. SNP candidate looks likely to be Councillor Grant Thoms, which would make sense seeing as he represents a wide area of the constituency in the council. Labour candidate looks likely not to be Paul Martin (Michael's son) so looks as if it's going to be Willie Bain, Michael Martins election agent.
Whoever the candidates are and no matter how good it looks for the SNP, I'm not taking anything for granted! At the moment, I think the SNP is probably ahead, but we won't know for sure until the campaign is properly underway and the voting actually takes place. The state of Labour, both locally and nationally, being in such a dire state certainly helps us, as does the fact that a lot of the Labour council school closures are in the area!
Labour sources have admitted that they don't believe they will win this one, but they said that before Glenrothes! Saying that, however, the situation has changed dramatically since Glenrothes and things are more favourable towards the SNP this time!
Tuesday 19 May 2009
SPEAKER WILL RESIGN ON 21st JUNE
Latest update: Michael Martin will resign on the 21st June and a new speaker will be elected on the 22nd June.Talk of an interim speaker to serve until the next general election is being made. Possibilities for a replacement are Ann Widecombe (Conservative) and Vince Cable (Liberal Democrats).
It was a bit of an anti-climax to what has been one of the most historic days in politics and democracy! His speech was billed to be one of the great events, but instead it was all over in about 35 seconds!
His resignation will be at the start of the summer holidays which will mean that the Glasgow North East by-election will be held during the summer months.
BREAKING NEWS: LABOUR PARTY CONSTITUENCY OFFICE TOLD TO PREPARE FOR BY-ELECTION!
Latest update: The Labour party constituency office in Glasgow North East has been told to prepare for a by-election during the summer months!
This effectively confirms that there will be a by-election during the summer in Glasgow North East!
He was a decent man but it is about time Michael Martin stood down and allow someone new to take over. Now it will be up to the people of Glasgow North East to have their say what they think of this out of date and out of touch Labour government! It will be a very interesting summer!
BREAKING NEWS: SPEAKER TO RESIGN!
Just hearing that that the Speaker Maichael Martin is now going to resign this afternoon!
Sky News says that he will make a statement toParliament this afternoon where he will announce that is is to stand down!
Still not heard if wether he will stand down as an MP as well, but will report back with further information and comment later!
By-election in Glasgow North East?
After watching the Speaker Michael Martins abysmal performance in the Commons yesterday, it is now looking increasingly likely that the Speaker will not only stand down from the Speakership but will resign as the MP for Glasgow North East as well! This would, obviously, trigger yet another likely devastating by-election for Labour!
Glasgow North East is just right next door to Glasgow East, now held by John Mason (Hooray!), and we all know that the last thing Gordon Brown wants now is another by-election defeat in a Labour heartland, and with the decision of whether a vote of no confidence on the speaker is to held or not now entrusted upon the Prime Minister, I'm not sure he will really want to hold a vote.
A vote of no confidence is urgently needed and I think over the coming days we will see various MP's demanding that the PM holds the vote. Of course, it's equally likely that the Speaker will use the threat of triggering a by-election as a way of hopefully persuading the PM not to hold the vote!
Whatever Gordon Brown decides to do, one thing is for certain, and that is that the next few days will be very interesting indeed and the likelihood of a by-election in Glasgow North East will increase dramatically! In the words of one MP, "We are looking at a dead Speaker walking!"
Glasgow North East is just right next door to Glasgow East, now held by John Mason (Hooray!), and we all know that the last thing Gordon Brown wants now is another by-election defeat in a Labour heartland, and with the decision of whether a vote of no confidence on the speaker is to held or not now entrusted upon the Prime Minister, I'm not sure he will really want to hold a vote.
A vote of no confidence is urgently needed and I think over the coming days we will see various MP's demanding that the PM holds the vote. Of course, it's equally likely that the Speaker will use the threat of triggering a by-election as a way of hopefully persuading the PM not to hold the vote!
Whatever Gordon Brown decides to do, one thing is for certain, and that is that the next few days will be very interesting indeed and the likelihood of a by-election in Glasgow North East will increase dramatically! In the words of one MP, "We are looking at a dead Speaker walking!"
Sunday 17 May 2009
Major poll boost for SNP
An extraordinary poll has been produced for the next Westminster election which has given a previously unthinkable boost to the SNP! The poll puts the SNP at 38%, compared to Labour who are in a dire state at just 27%! Crucially, this poll is for Westminster, and the fact that the SNP has such a huge lead over Labour for the next general election is hugely significant! If repeated at the next election, the SNP would win 37 Westminster seats! Labour, however, would hold on to just 12 seats! The Lib Dems would have 8 seats and the Tories would have 2 seats.
Remember, just about 1 month ago, Labour had a massive 10 point lead over the SNP for Westminster! Now, after what has been probably Gordon Browns worst few weeks as Prime Minister yet, the SNP has now completely overturned that lead and are on course to become Scotland's biggest party at Westminster, making it not just the SNP's best ever poll for Westminster, but also Labour's worst ever polling result in Scotland ever!
Also, thought I would mention the news that a vote of no confidence is to be held against the Speaker Michael Martin tomorrow in the House of Commons! Personally, I think he should go as he has been speaker for just too long now and is too out of touch! And while were at it, why not call an election, Mr Brown, or are you to scared of the electorate?
Remember, just about 1 month ago, Labour had a massive 10 point lead over the SNP for Westminster! Now, after what has been probably Gordon Browns worst few weeks as Prime Minister yet, the SNP has now completely overturned that lead and are on course to become Scotland's biggest party at Westminster, making it not just the SNP's best ever poll for Westminster, but also Labour's worst ever polling result in Scotland ever!
Also, thought I would mention the news that a vote of no confidence is to be held against the Speaker Michael Martin tomorrow in the House of Commons! Personally, I think he should go as he has been speaker for just too long now and is too out of touch! And while were at it, why not call an election, Mr Brown, or are you to scared of the electorate?
Enough is enough! It's time for fundamental change!
It's been some week, hasn't it! Politicians from every party have been found out for squandering our cash! A mortgage that was already paid off, bookcases, moats, trouser pressers, and even horse manure are all just some of the things our elected representatives have claiming expenses for! So far, the MP who has been found to be the countries most expensive politician is Eric Joyce, the Labour MP for Falkirk, who claimed a grand total of £187, 334 of taxpayers money! What's interesting is that, out of the top 50 most expensive MPs, a staggering 42 of them are all Labour!! It's interesting as, just last year, Gordon Brown stated at his party conference that the Labour party was a party of "moral values" and a "drive for social reform"! Well, nothing could be further from the truth, and the voters know it! Take one constituent from the Speaker Micheal Martin's constituency, who said, she will "never, never vote Labour again"! Remember, it used to be that this was a place that people would vote for a monkey with a red rosette!
But what's happening here is not just a bad time for Labour, instead, what we are witnessing is something very much historical happening! Ever since 1921, the two main parties have been the Conservatives and the Labour party, with Tweedledum and Tweedledee switching from opposition to government several time over that 50 - 60 years! Now, that could all be about to change! Take a recent opinion poll, for example. Labour was put at just 17%, making neck and neck with the UK Independence Party and only three points ahead of the Liberal Democrats! As for the Scottish sample of that poll, Labour was at just 21%, it's lowest ever level in Scotland, with the SNP a massive 19 points ahead of Labour on 40%! Think about it, just a few years ago, a poll like this in Scotland would have been simple unthinkable, but then so was the thought of Labour MPs squandering taxpayers money, like spending £16, 000 on a mortgage already paid off!
What these polls represent is a real desire for, not just any old change of government like we've had over the past 50 - 60 years, but real fundamental change, with a desire for politics to tread on to uncharted ground, with not even just a completely new wrath of MPs, but a desire for a new agenda and a new party of government! We had our first taste of new governance in 2007 when Scotland voted in the SNP for the first time in history! Now, at Westminster, people are just becoming sick and tired of the old political class that has become out of touch and out of time! It is now being seriously suggested that the Labour party could follow the same path as the Liberals did in 1921 by becoming just the third largest party and not having any real chance of being in government for at least 50 years! In a way, it's not really that surprising that Labour should be punished in this way. It is the Labour party that has made democracy in this country a joke and a mockery!
But what's happening here is not just a bad time for Labour, instead, what we are witnessing is something very much historical happening! Ever since 1921, the two main parties have been the Conservatives and the Labour party, with Tweedledum and Tweedledee switching from opposition to government several time over that 50 - 60 years! Now, that could all be about to change! Take a recent opinion poll, for example. Labour was put at just 17%, making neck and neck with the UK Independence Party and only three points ahead of the Liberal Democrats! As for the Scottish sample of that poll, Labour was at just 21%, it's lowest ever level in Scotland, with the SNP a massive 19 points ahead of Labour on 40%! Think about it, just a few years ago, a poll like this in Scotland would have been simple unthinkable, but then so was the thought of Labour MPs squandering taxpayers money, like spending £16, 000 on a mortgage already paid off!
What these polls represent is a real desire for, not just any old change of government like we've had over the past 50 - 60 years, but real fundamental change, with a desire for politics to tread on to uncharted ground, with not even just a completely new wrath of MPs, but a desire for a new agenda and a new party of government! We had our first taste of new governance in 2007 when Scotland voted in the SNP for the first time in history! Now, at Westminster, people are just becoming sick and tired of the old political class that has become out of touch and out of time! It is now being seriously suggested that the Labour party could follow the same path as the Liberals did in 1921 by becoming just the third largest party and not having any real chance of being in government for at least 50 years! In a way, it's not really that surprising that Labour should be punished in this way. It is the Labour party that has made democracy in this country a joke and a mockery!
When Labour became New Labour in the 90's, they effectively gave up and abandoned the very thing that the Labour party was set up to do, to help the non-privileged and to redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor! People are now asking themselves, what is the point of the Labour party? What do they honestly stand for? What record can Labour claim for the past 12 years? Well, I'll tell you what Labour's record is:-
- 1 in every 4 children living in poverty
- Pensioner poverty increasing by 20, 000 people, making the total number of pensioners in poverty 200, 000
- A deregulated market economy that has led us into the worst recession since the 1930's
- A centralised and part privatised NHS, which is not even worthy of the name
- An illegal war in Iraq
- Thousands of students in huge debt after leaving college and University
- Rising inflation, food prices and, of course, taxes
- Spending £25 billion to replace Trident (think what that money could have bought)
- Closure and reduction of vital services - such as the Post office
- Introduction ID cards (a total waste of money)
- A £1 billion cut in Scotland's budget meaning cuts in Schools and hospitals
What sort of record is this? And the Labour party is "Proud" of this record! It's a disgrace! People are just fed up! Fundamental change is needed as it is the only way the trust between the public and their elected representatives can be brought back! We have two elections in the next 12 months, the European election in less than 3 weeks time and the General election next year. I have a feeling that it will be in these elections that Labour is given the biggest kicking of its life and effectively killed off for many, many years to come! The current political system that has existed for the past 50 - 60 years is about to come to an end and, as a result, Democracy in this country is about to change! We will be the witnesses to history and it will be us that make it happen and I urge every person reading this to make it happen and vote for fundamental change! Of course, that comes with a warning! DO NOT vote for the fascist and racist views of the BNP! Take a lesson from history, where, in the Weimar republic of Germany in the 1920s and 30s, during a time of depression and political upheaval, many voters became fed up and turned to the Nazis! Think of the consequences of that and how NOT casting your vote for the BNP can stop that from being repeated! Fundamental change can happen in other forms and other parties! Of course, the best fundamental change we can create is by voting for Independence and giving ourselves that chance to run our own affairs and create a better system! After all, we can't do any worse than at the moment!
Wednesday 13 May 2009
Monday 11 May 2009
SNP on course to win Euro elections!
This will knock the whole MP's expenses saga off the front pages, or at least it should! If not then I'll just be happy if it actually just gets a mention! To be honest, this story was actually in a newspaper so at least it has been mentioned! So what's so big about this story that I believe it should be the main headline grabbing story! Well, it's yet another poll, but not just any poll, an opinion poll for the European election!!!! Oh, the drama! Stop the Press! Call the Palace immediately, quick!!
Actually it is a good poll, for the SNP anyway. The SNP stands for euro voting intentions at 37%, giving us a massive 17 point lead over Labour, who are stuck at just 25%! In fact, Labour, in Scotland, are now only two points ahead of the Tories, who are at 23%! Meanwhile, Tavish Scott's ego party (or for those who care, Liberal Democrats) are pushed right down to a mere 8%! How would this result in seats then:
SNP :- 3 seats
Labour :- 2 seats
Tories :- 1 seat
Lib Dems :- 0 seats
This would result in SNP candidates Ian Hudgeton, Alyn Smith and Aileen McLeod all becoming Scotland's super three MEP's! But one question still remains, will the turnout go beyond 25%!
Actually it is a good poll, for the SNP anyway. The SNP stands for euro voting intentions at 37%, giving us a massive 17 point lead over Labour, who are stuck at just 25%! In fact, Labour, in Scotland, are now only two points ahead of the Tories, who are at 23%! Meanwhile, Tavish Scott's ego party (or for those who care, Liberal Democrats) are pushed right down to a mere 8%! How would this result in seats then:
SNP :- 3 seats
Labour :- 2 seats
Tories :- 1 seat
Lib Dems :- 0 seats
This would result in SNP candidates Ian Hudgeton, Alyn Smith and Aileen McLeod all becoming Scotland's super three MEP's! But one question still remains, will the turnout go beyond 25%!
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