Has Phil Woolas caused double trouble for the Lib Dems?

[Guest sibon]

Now that Phil Woolas has been suspended by Labour and triggered a by-election, has he inadvertantly struck a second blow to the Lib Dems?

 

His first blow was obviously winning the seat in dubious circumstances. The by-election, though presents a bigger issue.

 

Will the electorate show their disgust at the Lib Dems lack of honesty in the General Election campaign, or will they endorse the subsequent actions of the Coalition as being in the national interest?

 

Personally, I can no longer see any point in voting Lib Dem. Will the voters of Oldham East and Saddleworth partake in a two horse Tory/Labour race?

[natjack]

Personally, I can no longer see any point in voting Lib Dem. Will the voters of Oldham East and Saddleworth partake in a two horse Tory/Labour race?

Why were you voting LibDem in the first place?

 

If you're really either Labour or Tory at heart, not a Liberal and don't hold to their core values, you won't care whether Liberal values are being represented in Government will you?

 

If you have Liberal values at heart, you should still vote for them as this is your best chance of having at least some influence on the Tories. We don't want to risk letting Labour back in at this stage, that'd be a farce.

[Guest sibon]

Why were you voting LibDem in the first place?

 

If you're really either Labour or Tory at heart, not a Liberal and don't hold to their core values, you won't care whether Liberal values are being represented in Government will you?

 

If you have Liberal values at heart, you should still vote for them as this is your best chance of having at least some influence on the Tories. We don't want to risk letting Labour back in at this stage, that'd be a farce.

 

I didn't vote Lib Dem. I almost did, but stayed true to my principles in the end, despite Blair and Brown giving me many reasons to look elsewhere.

 

I'm trying to gauge opinion about how much the political landscape has changed since May.

 

For me , it has changed forever. The Lib Dems are now a party that will dwindle and die. Mostly for the reasons that you espouse, they have betrayed many of their core principles, therefore they have no real reason to exist. A proper Liberal Party might well take their place.

 

This by-election in a Liberal heartland will give a fascinating insight into the future of the Lib Dems.

[wellyman]

Whatever happens it is good news for the Tories. Once again a Labour politician is forced from the party in disgrace, and the only party that can actually lose a seat at the by-election is Labour.

So I suppose the question for voters is do you want to vote for an opposition MP or one in government, because a L/D MP can conceivably influence policy.

If Labour win the seat it just proves to the L/Ds that they really don't want to bring the government down and force an election. If they win the seat it increases the majority by 2.

[andygardener]

I didn't vote Lib Dem. I almost did, but stayed true to my principles in the end, despite Blair and Brown giving me many reasons to look elsewhere.

 

I'm trying to gauge opinion about how much the political landscape has changed since May.

 

For me , it has changed forever. The Lib Dems are now a party that will dwindle and die. Mostly for the reasons that you espouse, they have betrayed many of their core principles, therefore they have no real reason to exist. A proper Liberal Party might well take their place.

 

This by-election in a Liberal heartland will give a fascinating insight into the future of the Lib Dems.

 

So you're a labour person. Iraq war/destroy the economy/massive ammounts of draconion new laws sort of chap/chapess.

 

What have either the tories or the lib dems got to do with you?

 

You're a supporter of the former regime and what they did. That is what you should be worrying about.

[natjack]

I didn't vote Lib Dem. ... A proper Liberal Party might well take their place.

Oh right, you're Labour ... it figgers, that was a typical misleading comment For you, how has it changed? You were a Labour voter and you still are a Labour voter You just seem to be briefing against the LibDems in the hope that your lot might get back in again?

 

There is a Liberal Party, I think it still exists. What was left after the Liberal Democrats was formed. I think one of the main problems the LDs have is that because of the circumstances they were formed in, they have Labour sympathisers in the ranks, the ones that aren't actually bad enough to really be Labour but think they should be. They also have soft Tories to contend with as well, who aren't hard enough to be real Tories but lean more to the right than the centreleft.

 

I'm not a party member, but unless something really drastic happens in the course of this Parliament, I'd still vote LD even though I suppose we'll get the grinning blonde in again

[Guest sibon]

So you're a labour person. Iraq war/destroy the economy/massive ammounts of draconion new laws sort of chap/chapess.

 

What have either the tories or the lib dems got to do with you?

 

You're a supporter of the former regime and what they did. That is what you should be worrying about.

 

Apart from the fact that I'm a British Citizen?

 

Do I need any other reason to take an interest.

 

Now, do you have anything to add to the thread, or are you just here to throw insults around?

[wellyman]

Apart from the fact that I'm a British Citizen?

 

Do I need any other need to take an interest.

 

Now, do you have anything to add to the thread, or are you just here to throw insults around?

 

I didn't actually spot any insults in andygardener's post. Perhaps you are just oversensitive about being a Labour voter and repeatedly seeing your MPs being expelled from the party in disgrace.

[Guest sibon]

Oh right, you're Labour ... it figgers, that was a typical misleading comment For you, how has it changed? You were a Labour voter and you still are a Labour voter You just seem to be briefing against the LibDems in the hope that your lot might get back in again?

 

I am. Although my loyalty has been tested by the endless wars and a refusal to invest properly in our most socially deprived areas. More of that another time, perhaps.

 

I'm not a party member, but unless something really drastic happens in the course of this Parliament, I'd still vote LD even though I suppose we'll get the grinning blonde in again

 

That sort of answers my question. Would you consider yourself a floating voter, or do you always vote Lib Dem?

[Guest sibon]

I didn't actually spot any insults in andygardener's post. Perhaps you are just oversensitive about being a Labour voter and repeatedly seeing your MPs being expelled from the party in disgrace.

 

Do you think that I have no right to ask about the Tories and the Lib Dems?