Why have Plaid and the Greens given way to right-wing, pro-austerity Lib Dems in by-election?
As a resident of Brecon and Radnorshire, I find it strange that apparently left-wing parties like Plaid Cymru and the Greens are not fielding candidates in the by-election – because they are supporting the right-wing, pro-austerity, pro-privatisation Liberal Democrats.
Does that make any sense to anyone at all?
Sure, Plaid and the Greens want the UK to remain in the EU, which is the Lib Dems’ current vote-grubbing pose, but the leaders of those parties must know that giving the yellow peril another MP will only make it more likely to propose another coalition with the blue meanies (that’s the Tory Party to the uninitiated).
Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said his party’s decision was intended to “coalesce support for the remain side in Wales”. But this reasoning doesn’t work.
A win in Brecon and Radnorshire would give the Liberal Democrats just 14 MPs – not enough to exert any effective influence over whether the UK stays in the EU or leaves it.
Did you hear any reports of the Liberal Democrats swaying any of the Brexit votes that Parliament has already held?
No. Neither did I.
These party representatives – and their voters – are either living in a unicorn-chasing fantasy land or they are deliberately misleading the public.
And in the meantime, nothing is said about the policies that directly affect the well-being of people in one of the UK’s most deprived rural constituencies.
What will a Liberal Democrat MP do to ease the burden caused by cuts to public services? Nothing – Liberal Democrats supported Tory austerity for five long years.
What will a Liberal Democrat MP do to help people struggling to make ends meet because they are on Universal Credit? Nothing – Liberal Democrats helped the Tories introduce the failed scheme that takes money away from claimants more often than giving it out.
How will a Liberal Democrat calm uncertainty facing businesses because of Brexit? She won’t – and this is crucial. Jane Dodds will not be able to influence business reactions to Brexit in any way at all.
It’s time voters in Brecon and Radnorshire woke up to the fact that they are being fed a line of propaganda.
A choice between two right-wing, austerity-loving, privatising neoliberal organisations is no choice at all – and the Brexit Party is a bad joke, as Ann Widdecombe proved this week.
If only there was a party standing in this election whose policies actually stood up for ordinary people, bolstered the fabric of our society, and made sense of the confusion over Brexit.
Oh, but of course there is!
It’s the party nobody in the mass media wants to talk about.
In Brecon and Radnorshire, Labour is the party for you.
Source: Pro-remain parties strike byelection pact to fight Conservatives | Politics | The Guardian
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it’s a by election a temporary fix and right now we need anti Brexit MPs and I’m sorry as long as corbyn keeps saying honour the will of the referendum and refuses to commit to a second ref and oppose brexit labour is a pro brexit party.
as for oh the lib dems did nothing. that’s just blatant misrepresentation of facts I’m not a fan of the lib dems and their vote record but the coalition had austerity cuts far below tory pre election pledges and far closer to lib dems promises.
I think both went the wrong way as austerity is stupid but if you don’t think a pure tory government would have been worse you’ve clearly not paid attention over the last 3 years.
Why are you telling falsehoods about Labour? It is a democratic party and that has meant honouring the referendum result – but not to the point where it becomes national self-harm. That’s why Labour wants a referendum on any deal – or no deal – with the question to include the possibility of remaining in the EU after all. Labour is a party that is for the people of the UK, not for Brexit or Remain particularly. Any party that supported just one side would instantly alienate half the voting population.
The point about the Liberal Democrats is that they supported Tory austerity to the hilt. A pure Tory government was never going to happen. The fact that we had any kind of Tory government at all from 2010-15 is entirely due to the Liberal Democrats and their thirst for power.
The conundrum is that by trying to please everybody, you run the risk of pleasing nobody. If £abour supports a further referendum, especially one that includes the option to remain, it could be perceived as a betrayal and the result would be the same. It’s a tricky situation in which to be but then, people didn’t vote, in the referendum, along Party lines.
I know this may sound like treachery, but I would like anyone but the Tory criminal to be elected.
Mick, I have really liked your take on the state of the U.K. but if you can’t see why Labour are 4th and the Progressive Alliance doesn’t include Labour then you need to check out your party’s position on the Tory’s Brexit. I don’t respect the Tory’s Referendum or its result. I probably can’t influence much but maybe I can give you a slight pause for thought. I am unsubscribing from your thought provoking blog. I will probably rejoin in November, when we will still be in the EU, Bojo will be PM and he is leading an anti Brexit Tory party having lied to his party to get the leadership and the country about No Deal, but outsmarted everyone to secure power.
Who’s Mick?
There is no “Progressive Alliance” without Labour – especially not with the Liberal Democrats in it. “Reactionary Alliance” would be nearer the mark in such a situation.
If by “your party” you mean Labour, then I’m intimately aware of its position on Tory Brexit: OPPOSITION. Sorry if that doesn’t equate with your opinion but I have to write about facts.
I look forward to finding out whether any of your predictions come true. I do have a few doubts…
It sounds very much like some Plaid/ Libdem horse trading has taken place. I would look at adjacent constituencies where it is likely FibDems will stand down to let Plaid or greens sail through perhaps?