democracy-watch

The ever-splendid Simon Jenkins www.timesonline.co.uk puts into the clearest terms what makes us tired old democrats despair of both main parties.

Older voters must be incredulous that an election campaign is launched with Labour selling Britain’s car industry to the Chinese, forcing the NHS to seek help from private hospitals and tipping profits in private property speculation. In none of this can the Tories find fault. Nor have they quarrelled with Labour’s zest for military adventurism. The Thatcherite dispension holds both Mr Blair and Mr Howard in awe. Both are antipluralist, authoritarian conservatives. Both see political parties not as coalitions of interest but as election machines run on the juice of patronage."

Yes - a plague on both their houses.

No one thinks that the Lib Dems can win - but there just could be the light of a yellow dawn at the end of the tunnel. For, as Simon Jenkins points out, if in 90 Labour-Conservative marginals, half the Liberal Democrats could somehow be induced to vote Tory, the result would be a hung parliament.

"in a hung parliament Charles Kennedy gets to choose who goes to Downing Street, and on what terms."

Read in full Simon Jenkins article "At election poker Lib Dems can make a killing by playing their cards right"