Post Election Where are We
Some are saying this is new ground, a hung parliament. What might be new is if the Conservatives and the Lib-Dems combine. There are so many areas of policy where they don’t agree. Yet it could be what is needed. A Conservative party with its hard edges taken off. A Lib-Dem party with its odd box policies put to one side for now. A combination with no dependence on trade unions and a strong belief in personal liberty.
A sticking point might be electoral reform. Offering some kind of talking shop isn’t going to fool anyone. If the Conservatives fear there never being a single governing party of the right they should awaken to life in a democracy because if that is the case then that is what the people are voting for.
A combination of Conservatives and Lib-Dems would have a tidy majority so MP’s who feel strongly against something, for example European or nuclear policies could probably be allowed to vote as they wished. It could be said that if the combined parties can’t carry off a policy then it isn’t what is wanted anyway. In some cases Labour might vote to assist the passage but it would be foolish to think they wouldn’t find a way to object and not assist.
A Labour – Lib-Dem combination would seem more natural, yet such a combination hasn’t got a parliamentary majority so isn’t strong, and wouldn’t even have half of the votes cast. So it seems right to explore the Conservative – Lib-Dem options and if there are strong objectors on either side it will depend on how many there are as you can’t make everyone happy.