So Britain has a hung parliament. The last time this happened with in 1974. We are in an interesting and important time. I'll post more about the what happens in the coming days but I want to focus on the election.

Why didn't the Liberal Democrats do well?

The Liberal Democrats lost seats even though they get 1% more votes. It's a great shame. I really wanted the Lib Dems to come through in close third or second but it wasn't the case. It was looking like they were going to do that right up untill the exit polls. I think that a lot of people who were going to vote Lib Dems chickened out in the end for two reasons.

Fear - In the last week the Conservatives and Labour parties were both warning people about a hung parliament. They both made it sound like a hung parliament is a terrible thing where it really isn't. Even though we still ended up with the hung parliament I think that fear did discourage people from voting the way they wanted and more tactical.

Wasted Vote - The old saying "Voting Lib Dems is a wasted vote" must have played a part. There are people in the country who didn't want the Tories or Labour and then voted against them. To me it seems like it would have been probably been the normal Labour support who were initially drawn to the Lib Dems as an alternative to Labour probably went back to Labour in hope of stopping the Conservatives getting in power. I think that was bad because it took power from the Lib Dems who now have power to decide the fate now in the hung parliament. Their power could have been so much greater with more seats.

Proportional Represention

The fact that the Lib Dems increased their vote share but lost seats really shines light on how unfair the political system is. Proportional represention is a buzz word at the moment and is something I support. With PR liberal democrats would have 23% of MPs in parliament (they only get less than 10% now) and that would reflect what people voted for. Which is good! If we changed to PR we would definately have hung parliament in future and that'll make sure policies are only passed with much more support rather than one party just pushing them though.

So right now the news is all about Clegg meeting with Cameron, Clegg meeting with Brown, Clegg meeting with the Diberal Democrats... it looks like the power is in the hands of Clegg and Lib Dems. I think they'll do the right thing and if they a deal with the Tories (which seems very likely) it might even work! I like to think if parliament gets a ConDem'd (hehe I came up with condemed) parliament Clegg will be Cameron's conscience making sure the Conservatives don't do really bad things.

The final debate has just finished. It was a good debate at the start and then after immigration was brought up (followed by jobs and taxes), so was the temperature. It became very heated with all parties making their views more transparent, agreeing and disagreeing with each other. Much was repeated from the two previous debates but it's all about making sure the people know what you're policies are. If you've seen all three debates and don't know what each party is offering, you probably shouldn't be voting next week... assuming you've not made the decision to vote away from the three main parties.

Nick Clegg cemented my support of the Liberal Democrats with his strong defence of his policies after Cameron's and (less so) Brown's direct attacks. Clegg's performance wasn't his best, due to the pressure from Cameron, but still strong. Clegg really made a point to Cameron when he said "every time you talk about our polices you're wrong" and Clegg was so right their. Much of Cameron's arguments against Clegg were based on not really knowing the Lib Dems' policies.

David Cameron failed to convince me in anyway that Conservatives would be a good thing for the country. Cameron actually made my dislike for him and the Conservatives even stronger. He kept refusing to answer direct questions from both Clegg and Brown. He also kept completely dismissing Brown. I can see why. Labour seemingly don't stand a chance (based on polls and the bookies) but Brown's points weren't as bad as Cameron made out.

Lastly, Gordon Brown come across in a way I can't really sum up in a few words. Most of his policies are better than the Conservatives' but not convincing or as good as the Liberal Democrats. Brown acted like the captain of a sinking ship and who knows it's going down but is trying his hardest to keep a brave face. Much of his arguments where based around fear, trying to scare the public that Clegg and Cameron are not prepared to lead the country and that they'd damage the economy if elected. Part of his final statement Brown even conceded he might not be in power and commented that it would be Clegg and Cameron running the country together. Backing up the sinking ship analogy.

This debate was focused around the economy and the real key issues that came up were immigration, jobs and taxes.

Immigration

As I mentioned early immigration got the debate really going. Clegg's main policy is to get people who have been in the county for 10 years, who speak English, want to work and pay taxes into the system and putting something into this country. This is an amnesty and what both Brown and Cameron were arguing is that it would give the wrong message to people wanting to come to the UK illegally, that they'll be let off. It's definitely a valid point but not how I see it. If you get these illegal immigrants (the figure 600,000 people was used) paying taxes it's definitely a good thing. Then you've got to stop the illegal immigrants coming into the country. So long as that is done and done well the amnesty would be good. I'm not sure how the Lib Dems do plan to do this but one aspect is to gain control of people leaving the county, making sure the people who have been told to go actually go.

David Cameron was all talk about caps and easing. He wants to cap immigration but would not give a figure even after much pressure from both Clegg and Brown. The caps seem like a case of a good idea but with nothing backing it up. Cameron also wants an gradual easing of immigration when new countries enter the EU. A good idea and it would be something that, if he wins, would have to be decided after getting into power. Easing isn't just a case of giving one figure.

Again, I come to Brown last. The reason being I cannot remember any actual plan for immigration. And while writing the post I had Sky News on TV (they are definitely pro Conservatives) and Brown said he still doesn't know what the Lib Dems' polices are and that's not just on immigration. Seriously? He cannot be paying much attention to these debate and hasn't bothered reading their manifesto.

Jobs and Welfare

All three were really similar on what they want for jobs and getting people working. They all want high tech industry and to try to help small business. They all want to stop people who can but don't work. But that's were the similarities end.

Clegg will remove income tax on the first £10,000 you earn. Straight away the majority of the population will be about £1,000 better off. That will provide people who feel they are better off not working much more of an incentive as it should make then see the benefit of working. To create jobs he's really pushing tech. One such area is to make the UK the world leader in manufacturing for green power, such as wind turbines. Also, Clegg really wants to push education and showed this very well when the audience member asked about it. Cameron had a very good idea of committing that a quarter of government spending to be spent with smaller businesses and make it easier for them to get government contracts. That would put a lot of money back into the country's economy and provide jobs. Much of what Brown was saying about getting people off the dole I couldn't take too seriously. One of his lines was "no life on the dole". While he's been in power more and more people are on the dole.

Taxes

Keeping with what he's being saying all along, Clegg will remove income tax on the first £10,000 you earn and put a 10% on banks. That's been a high priority of the Lib Dems consistently and I fully support. He also wants to bring back income related pensions so if you work all you're life you'll be better off that people who didn't. Brown wants to raise national insurance for people earning over £20,000. He already got rid of the 10% tax rate which hurts the poorest and it seems like he's now targeting people on more average incomes. How Brown wants to balance that tax increase is with tax credits. Clegg is also for keeping tax credits but reducing who can claim them, using himself as a example of someone who shouldn't be able to get them so people earning less can benefit more. Again, Cameron didn't mention figures. He kept arguing Brown is targeting the wrong people but not saying who he'll tax. Like Clegg, Banks were a target for Cameron but he gave no figures. It also seems as though Cameron is suggesting more taxes for rich people but never actually says it. Conservatives' old ways of benefiting the rich are definitely not changing.

The next 7 days will be very interesting. Labour seem to be out of the running to win. It looks to me like the Conservatives will get the most seats with Labour and Liberal Democrats very close to each in 2nd and 3rd place. A hung Parliament is highly probable.

The general election is just round the corner and it's chance for the British public to cast their votes to decide who will be the next Prime Minister. Only a few weeks ago I was thinking I wasn't going to bother to vote but now I'll be voting Liberal Democrats and this post will explain why. If you're going to vote Lib Dems then great. If you're reading this and are undecided, hopefully I might convince you to vote Lib Dems. If you're going to vote for another party or independent then fair enough but why not keep reading?...

In the past I've always thought I liked the Lib Dems although, not being able to vote, I never really paid too much attention to politics. This time round I can vote but was thinking about not bothering. The UK has been a two party country for decades, Labour and Conservatives.

Gordon Brown - Labour

I wasn't going to vote because I cannot stand Gordon (Gormless as my Dad always calls him) Brown. Gordon Brown is an unelected Prime Minister who isn't a leader. He doesn't have the presence of someone who should be leading the country. If you've ever seen him talk you'll know he doesn't keep you listening. Nothing like Obama unfortunately. That aside I think he is one of the major factors to why the UK has been affect by this recession harder than other countries. Previously as the Chancellor of the Exchequer he should really have seen this coming. Some say he allowed the banks to keep borrowing. The Labour party do have good policies and ideas but Brown isn't the one to make them a reality. He has been in power for a few years now, he's had his chance to prove himself but hasn't.

David Cameron - Conservatives

Gordon Brown's opposition in the Conservative party is David Cameron. He's worse than Brown! There's something about him I cannot abid. He's such a pompous arse. Really, he grinds my gears. As a comedian said (I can't for the life of my remember who), something along the lines of "the confidence of someone who's never been punched". He's never lived in the real world, privileged from the start. Unfortunately, a lot of politicians are like this which is a shame. He feels he can communicate with us by saying "I met a... " followed by a minority group. That's just Cameron. The Conservatives, while they might use the slogan "Vote For Change", they themselves never change. They always favour the rich few and that doesn't suit me. I'm not one of those, and if I was I still wouldn't vote for them because it isn't right.

Other Options...

There are other parties and independents to vote for but in my area the only other two parties that field candidates are the Lib Dems and the BNP. I am definitely not going to vote BNP. They might want to put British people first which is how it should be in Britain but it's a party that clearly insights racism. The leader of the BNP, Nick Griffin, is far worse then all of Brown's and Cameron's bad qualities (yeah they do have some good qualities) put together. 

Nick Clegg - Liberal Democrats

The options I am left with are a no vote or Liberal Democrats. Every election people claim a vote for Lib Dems is a wasted vote and it seemingly has been. However, I don't believe this. Every vote counts... well in regional representation it might not work exactly that way but it still counts. Politics is a slow process but if you vote for what you believe in you'll be sending a message to everyone and in particular those who thought like you but didn't vote because they thought it was a wasted vote. If the party you supports gets a increase in votes then people might be encouraged to follow.

So the Liberal Democrats. Why am I going to put my X in their box? Simply I agree with them and their policies. And, I like Nick Clegg. He is one of the few likeable characters in politics. In the first ever televised pre-election debate between the to three parties he came out of the starting blocks and showed the country Labour and Conservatives aren't the only options. To me he looks like he will, if elected, get right in there on the world stage to stick up for the UK. Nick Clegg, like Cameron, is someone who has been privileged too. With Clegg I feel he actually wants to change things and not just be a career politician. If that was the case I don't think he'd have joined the third party. It seems as though he really wants to make a change for the better and that's why I like him. 

Liberal Democrats' Policies

It's not really just the person I'm voting for. The policies are the most important part. I'm going to outline some of the Lib Dems' policies and why I agree with them.

Europe

The Lib Dems are pro-europe. They want to be apart of Europe and possibly the Euro (but they promise there will be a referendum). So many British people don't like the idea of being part of Europe or the Euro. I don't particularly want to have the Euro myself. However, we are part of Europe and that really cannot be changed without completely detaching ourselves. That way will be nothing but bad for the UK as most of our trade is with the Euro zone and we'll lose so much of that. We are part of it and we should make the most of it. We should be in there at the deep end making sure we get what the country wants instead of being on the sidelines and being bossed around. This is something Nick Clegg argued in the first leaders debate and I totally agree with it. We should be getting all we can out of Europe and that's not going to happen without being actively involved.

Trident

Trident is the British nuclear deterrent. It's a system that was made for post-cold war era. Since then the world has changed. It is coming time for trident to be renewed or replaced. Today, the biggest threat to the UK is from terrorist groups. Would these be deterred by a trident? I don't think so. How could the UK fired nuclear missiles at a threat that has no one home or base? It wouldn't be able to. To that affect trident isn't what's needed these days. The Lib Dems oppose commiting to renew trident now when the world is ever changing and there's still life in the system. This life gives time to decide on the best alternative. Maybe there isn't a valid alternative but it still needs discussing before committing to anything.

Economy and Environment

The Lib Dems policies around the economy and environment overlap somewhat so I've put them together too.

The UK, like much of the Western world, is in a recession. People say that it we're coming out of it but it'll be a long process. The cause of the recession were "The Banks" who did much foolish lending and made billions of Pounds. They made money, then lost the money of others and the UK tax payer has to foot the bill. The Lib Dems propose to tax the banks more so that they pay back the tax payer and as insurance in case they mess up again. Banks do generate much wealth for the UK but really that wealth is kept within a very small group of people. All that wealth is created from the people of the UK (and the rest of the world since banks are so multi-national) so it's only fair, in a society such as ours, that some of that money goes back into the country to make it better and at the moment not enough does. So the Lib Dems' tax would help put more money into the economy to help it grow.

The Lib Dems also want to invest in green industry. Not only will this help the economy but hopefully target climate change. Their plans include harnessing wind, wave and solar power to decentralise the power grid which is great for jobs around the country. Also, not to scaremonger, a decentralised grid would make a terrorist attack on the UK's infrastructure much less damaging if one was to happen. They do not support nuclear power stations. Nuclear does seem like a good answer to our rising power consumption but there are many down sides to nuclear, so if viable alternatives (they do exist) then that's the way to go. Something else they want to do is try to reduce the power we use in our homes (with proper insulation as an example) which would reduce the need for more power plants.

Another up side to decentralising and using our own natural energy is that we as a nation we become less reliant on power coming from other countries. And, moreover should prevent dramatic price fluctuation due to global demand.

So to sum up why I'll be voting Liberal Democrats. I like Nick. I cannot stand Gordon or Cameron. I agree with more of their policies than the other parties. It's simple really. Oh, and I placed a £10 bet at 100 to 1 that they'll get most seats. Fingers crossed.