[Three of Seven]

A surprise announcement was made in the UK today, Theresa May is seeking to call an early election, set for June 8th. This could be to get a greater Conservative majority in Parliament and weaken any opposition to Brexit plans, while the oppositions are weak, it's a smart move to bolster your ranks. Although, one thing she said last year is coming back to haunt her, when she said she wouldn't call an early election, though that will probably have minimal impact on what happens.

The announcement caught many off guard.

So the question is, do you have any thoughts on this announcement?

[Danska101]

This is pretty much guaranteed to give the tories a greater majority and be extremely bad news for Labour. This will have the wonderful effect of allowing the tories to do whatever they want even more than they can now so they can get right down to selling off all our public services, slashing benefits and ensuring working conditions are as low and underpaid as possible.

I eagerly await our post-brexit conservative run hellscape and look forward to working 28 hours a day 400 days a year for a pat on the head with no access to affordable healthcare, legal aid or any kind of financial safety net while being told its all for my own good.

[Kerry Malone]

It's a very clever political ploy by Mrs May, and one cannot help but respect the political savvy she's employed in doing this.

Not only has she found a way to silence her critics who claim she has an unelected mandate (although she was elected as an MP, and her party is the majority party, for some reason people think they elect the Prime Minister - which is an absolutely silly thing to believe!) but she's also found a way to potentially nobble any effective opposition in the House of Commons to their Brexit agend.

This move also gives her another five clear years (rather than the scraggy 3 she inherited from Mr Cameron), a chance to grow her majority by stealing Labour seats due to the mass dissatisfaction in the current divided and PR tainted Labour Party, plus potentially hurt the SNP - who are riding on a bit of a negative wave at the moment considering they just forced the Scottish independence nonsense back on the UK barely a few years after the last vote nearly divided the country - literally!

With several MP's stepping down from their seats at this election, there's a lot to play for.

[Minnow Raydor]

It's a very clever political ploy by Mrs May, and one cannot help but respect the political savvy she's employed in doing this.

Not only has she found a way to silence her critics who claim she has an unelected mandate (although she was elected as an MP, and her party is the majority party, for some reason people think they elect the Prime Minister - which is an absolutely silly thing to believe!) but she's also found a way to potentially nobble any effective opposition in the House of Commons to their Brexit agend.

This move also gives her another five clear years (rather than the scraggy 3 she inherited from Mr Cameron), a chance to grow her majority by stealing Labour seats due to the mass dissatisfaction in the current divided and PR tainted Labour Party, plus potentially hurt the SNP - who are riding on a bit of a negative wave at the moment considering they just forced the Scottish independence nonsense back on the UK barely a few years after the last vote nearly divided the country - literally!

With several MP's stepping down from their seats at this election, there's a lot to play for.

Not to hard to quess what party you voted for Kerry after reading the above statement looks like a Conservative public relations leaflet. Perhaps a harsh way to say to it but suppose with Scottish members here in the UFP dont think I would like to see one of our leaders here stating a idea or belief that the Independence topic is nonsense. I have nothing bad to say about the Woman its her party that I have issues with the track record of wanting to slash public services in flavor of bombs or just increasing there own wallets but that could be said about any body in public office. I live by the moto of "The leaser of two evils" and that partys record over the years speaks a thousands words.

Labour want to spend cash like a mad man the debt left by them was a joke and the Conservatives want to cut everything back to bog basic needs.
and while Brexit will happen and some down south may enjoy this I wish you luck with that because we the people of Scotland got what we wanted out of it the 50/50 split or England vs Scotland. Bet David is wishing he had taken that deal where all of the UK had to vote for it not just one place but oh well his mistake. Your right in some ways she could be wanting elections sooner to get the upper hand over certain issue but that time has been and gone the issues are not if things happen but when.

[Minnow Raydor]

Suppose it would if I payed more attention to spell checker.

[Avenger]

Personally yes I believe it's a ploy, she knows that opinion polls are high and it gives her chance to secure a power grab whilst she thinks she's at next to no risk of loosing to another party as the EU haven't yet submitted their response to Article 50. However this is due to land on her desk 3-4 weeks before the election which if it turns out to be a political pounding from the EU (which I deeply suspect it will be) it will crush her right before the general election vote, so whilst it's a clever political ploy it also could smack her right where it hurts right before the election.

unfortunately labours position is rather dire and risk loosing further ground as whilst there is still a lot of labour voters out there many don't vote labour due to the unsatisfactory position and mandate of their leader and his apparent lack of ability to lead - furthermore dwindling their prospects.

the SNP I think will more than likely gain more seats as their position has never been stronger and the Tories flipping them off if anything people will be likely to vote SNP to provide the proverbial middle finger to Theresa May.

the Lib Dems on the other hand (who I will be voting for) are in an awkward but opportunitistoc position, every by election by one they have one since their anti-Brexit campaign started and I believe this will be an opportunity for them to gain a lot of seats, some where people don't expect it. They have gone from 1 seat to around a dozen in less than a year - watch this space I think.

my parting comment to add to my analysis is that I think the opinion polls will be set to betray Theresa May as I think quietly discontentment towards the idea of Brexit is growing as it isn't turning out to be the glorious fire sale promised and we are set to loose more than what was originally sold to voters in the campaign. And then there is that big red bus too.... does make me wonder whether they'll put more ambiguous and flagrant remarks on one of them for the campaign, because the last one is going to come around and bite them in the rear.

ive even contemplated standing as an MP I feel that strongly on the issue, but that's a bun in the oven I haven't set on yet.

[Danska101]

Labour want to spend cash like a mad man the debt left by them was a joke and the Conservatives want to cut everything back to bog basic needs.

That Labour massively overspent and caused lots of debt etc. is a complete myth that the conversatives are very good at perpetuating in order to justify their own cuts and minimal amount of spending. The conservatives, on the other hand, have managed to increase the national debt since getting into power despite all their claims that they would do the opposite. The idea that they are even remotely responsible is a complete lie, basically, but one they've managed to get the country to believe for decades.

I'm not convinced that the current Labour party has thought things through quite so well as they could have done, though, but for all the frantic cries the media puts up of 'Labour want to bankrupt us!' every time they suggest spending anything at all, spending public money on things that need it is not such a bad thing.

http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2...last-70-years/
http://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/uk...ebt_chart.html

The opposition parties do not respect the referendum result in any way, and will do anything they can to undermine our Brexit negotiations. This is most evident in the House of Lords where the Conservatives do not hold a majority.
The only way to fix this is to hold an election to both try to get a larger majority and to secure a mandate.

The main opposition - Labour - are in favour of Brexit. After the amendment the Lords suggested (that EU nationals not be kicked out of the country when brexit happens, which strikes me as pretty reasonable tbh) was rejected, they voted Article 50 through anyway. The thing they have a problem with is the slash and burn approach the conservatives are taking which is going to make a bad situation much worse.

[Three of Seven]

I don't believe any of the major parties are in favour of reversing Brexit, they all understand that this is going to happen now and put forward their views of what the best way forward is. What is undemocratic is trying to swing parliament in your favour, in this case, the Tories trying to get more seats from a weaker opposition, this is undemocratic because all it does is mean they don't have to listen to the arguments or amendments put forward by other parties, how is this any different to a dictatorship? The amendments put forward by the opposition parties were not even unreasonable ones.

The best outcome would be a coalition, that is the most democratic form of a parliamentary government, where no one party can push through it's vision unopposed. In the case of Brexit negotiations, it should have been a cross-party negotiation team from the start, so all voices are heard and a consensus reached. That would be democratic and uphold "the will of the people" in the referendum.

On the subject of stability, the Tories only offer that to the rich or well-off, for the poor and vulnerable, they offer uncertainty and poverty. Labour, at the moment, are a mess, can't agree on anything. The Lib Dems probably seem to be the best option, they have a plan and it makes sense.

[Kerry Malone]

Not to hard to quess what party you voted for Kerry after reading the above statement looks like a Conservative public relations leaflet. Perhaps a harsh way to say to it but suppose with Scottish members here in the UFP dont think I would like to see one of our leaders here stating a idea or belief that the Independence topic is nonsense.

I have never once voted Conservative, and I have no intentions of doing so anytime soon. Perhaps when they gain admittance to the human race, I might consider it, but until then - no.

I can admire, as a keen observer of the political process, the actions taken by a political operator. I was analysing the situation as I saw it from a purely political perspective, rather than as an ardent Conservative follower.

My views on the Scottish desire to hold a second independence referendum are entirely my own, and I am entitled to think they are nonsense. There was a referendum in September 2014 that voted in favour of staying part of the United Kingdom, and because the entire United Kingdom then voted last year to exit the EU (something I didn't vote for, but like Jonathan, respect the political process that gave us the outcome) the leaders of Scotland threw their toys out of the pram and demanded to go independent before Brexit happened, as they wanted to stay in the EU. If Scotland are permitted to hold another referendum on this issue, and the vote decides to go independent, I wish Scotland nothing but the best.

To state that because I happen to be on FEO, I am not entitled to have opinions on a political debate, is extremely short-sighted of you. There was a discussion about the US election not that long ago, and things were said about both sides - and I don't recall any of our American members getting all upset and complaining about it. I do not believe, nor would I be so degrading as to believe that our Scottish members are so sensitive and easily offended such as to not state a view that I believe that the independence moment is 'nonsense'. I am a firm unionist, and I believe that our country is stronger united, as to quote Abraham Lincoln; "A house divided against itself, cannot stand." That is my view - if you don't agree with it, that's your prerogative, but I have just as much right to say it as you do - regardless of the colour of my name.

[Avenger]

FEO are as entitled to an opinion as any other member, at the end of the day we are a volunteer organisation and do not require to follow a code of conduct! Debate is free and free reigning as long as it is contextualised and appropriate and not rude or insulting to a particular person or group in a derogatory way, voicing an opinion doesn't constitute this - more to the point if someone was out of hand a member of FEO would monitor the post as per our T&Cs


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[Bar'ol]

FEO are as entitled to an opinion as any other member, at the end of the day we are a volunteer organisation and do not require to follow a code of conduct! Debate is free and free reigning as long as it is contextualised and appropriate and not rude or insulting to a particular person or group in a derogatory way, voicing an opinion doesn't constitute this - more to the point if someone was out of hand a member of FEO would monitor the post as per our T&Cs


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That part bold concerns me, lol. Everyone else has to follow the rules ;p Website has certain rules as im sure you're aware of as FEO member. But I agree everyone is entitled to opinion unless its breaks rules of being nasty.

[Avenger]

We don't have a code like an MP but we do have rules that are required to be followed, those rules are queried as part of the entry exam!


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[Avenger]

Yes that's exactly what I meant Sammy


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