You can't vote the coalition back in.

I would not be at all surprised if the next government is a Lab/Lib coalition.

Tax? Whats that?

believe its something the government take off the workers and waste it in many different ways,one being giving the work shy lazy so and so`s a hand out..

Alcohol, what's that?

You're spot on. I'm proud to be British but no desire to come back and live and work in the UK and lose a huge proportion of my earnings. Why would I effectively reduce the lifestyle of my kids to supplement a whole load of things I don't agree with.

Its sad to watch the decline of the UK in the worlds pecking order.

Are you implying Clegg would whore himself, again, for a moment on the front benches?

The Lib Dems will be destryed at the next election.

Their manifesto was meaningless, I am sure I heard Clegg say that they could ignore theor manifesto pledges because tyhey did not expect to be in governmant and anyway the Tories are the biggest party.

He will lsoe his seat at the next election, Sheffield is full of students.

Ane the Tories, until not too long ago pledged to honour Labours spending plans, and where in their manifesto was cutting Police numbers, reducing child benefit, increasing VAT and the pledge on knife crime?

If it comes out as a hung parliament then it's inevitable there will be discussions about forming a coalition. A Labour-Lib Dem coalition would make more sense as the two parties are generally closer in policy.

There are two wings of the Lib Dems, the right wing of the party are pretty much Tories on economic policy, pro free market, anti state, but liberal on social issues. Nick Clegg, David Laws, Danny Alexander are this type of Lib Dem. Then the left of the party are basically social democrats who when Blair was Labour leader, were to the left of Labour on higher taxation, more public spending, opposition to Iraq war etc. These are guys like Simon Hughes and Charles Kennedy. Menzies Campbell and Vince Cable were also more this type of Liberal.

For Clegg himself, this partnership with the Tories is more natural than partnership with Labour but where Clegg has got himself into trouble is that on the ground, most Lib Dem members and their supporters, identify more with the left of the party. The number of economic/social liberals like Clegg in the country are quite small, its just a section of business people and professionals who support the free market but see the Conservatives as stuffy bigots on social issues, it's not a large movement by any means...the Lib Dems rely on growing their vote through students and picking up disaffected former Labour supporters, which is why Clegg led a party whose manifesto was more to the left than he would have liked....that's why he now looks like a big hypocrite. The most awkward member of the coalition is Cable who had to be included because of his high profile but looks to me like a man who is trying to defend in public policies which he doesn't like.

The Lib Dems will get battered terribly at the next election and Labour have most to gain, by default, but I don't think they will win the election with Ed Miliband, I can see him being a caretaker leader who will be replaced in two years time. I would not be surprised if the next PM is Yvette Cooper.

Clegg won't lose his seat at the next election, it's just that his constituency won't be Sheffield.

Yvette Cooper failed to get the nomination to be Labour candidate for one of the Warrington constituencies in 1997.

Why blame Clegg for the student fees rise. It's a policy by Cameron.

Fair enough he made an u turn on that but Cameron has made that may U turns he will end up back where he started. Only thing Labour needs to do is get a decent Leader and play the Libs off against the Cons next election and they will walk in. Especially if the Condems get the full term as by then most services will have less people working for them.

Biggest issue though is why have they hammerd the poor and working classes and let the banks get away with it. WHY becasue they bank roll them.

Because no fees for students was one of the major policys from the lib dems, and it wasn't a Tory one. That plus the fact that after the coalition was announced they still stated they weren't going to back down on those major policys.

Essentially it was expected from the tories, but it just shows how little impact the Lib Dems have and easily they sell out for a little power.

I agree with what someone said about Ed Milliband, he just looks stupid. Much rather have had David leading the party, at least he looks the part.

I don't think theres masses of direct contributions from the banks to Conservative party funds but the Tory front benchers have got one eye on an executive board position with a bank after they retire/are forced out over some scandal, where they'll attend about 4 board meetings a year and draw a £200k salary for it etc. So the banks have some of the politicians locked in on that one.

There was something in this months Bank of England Financial Stability Review which was very revealing about how much the banks benefit from the tax payers' guarantee, which Robert Peston blogged about on the BBC website. Because the largest banks have got taxpayer guarantee (ie if they go bust, depositors will have their savings guaranteed by the UK taxpayer), those banks get to borrow at a lower rate of interest than other banks do, its the same idea as if you were able to tell your mortgage provider that HM Government would meet your repayments if you weren't able to, they would let you have a super low rate on your mortgage because they aren't taking any risk.

Because those banks can borrow cheaply, and lend at the rates that they set themselves, that obviously helps them make money through borrowing from one source and lending to others at a higher rate.

The Bank of England estimates the "implicit value" of that taxpayers guarantee, at being worth £50bn in 2008 and £100bn in 2009, without those margins, the four big banks would not be making profits AT ALL. So if the government was to talk tough and say, these are the rules, don't pay any bonuses this year, offer low rates to small businesses and so on, when the Banks started to talk tough in response and say the government should keep its nose out, all the government needs do is say OK we will remove the taxpayers guarantee to allow the banks their independence, and then next time those banks try to borrow money they will start facing sky high rates of interest which will soon make them come back cap in hand to government to ask for the taxpayers guarantee back.

Ive heard some b....cks in my time but the above statement takes the biscuit !!
I would class myself as exactly what you describe - middle class professional, who owned his own property during the late 1990's.
Am I better off.....NO
Was I better off....NO
Has the property price increase affected my disposable income......NO
Has the property price fall affected me...NO (you can work out why I trust)
Has my tax burden risen over the last 10 years.....YES


Don't ever forget it is exactly the likes of me that gets hit every which way, MIDDLE ENGLAND, it always does, has and will.
I work bloody hard to keep my family together and bring them up in the right way, provide for them and try and make them good people, and if your statement was aimed at those of us who have done well and buy our own properties on the back of it.....guilty as charged.
I have worked abroad in so called 1st World Countries as well as 3rd, and anyone who knocks the NHS....go try it somehwere else, come back and tell me its not superb.

Anyone who tells you that we would be in a much better position had the coalition not got in and things remained the same under Labour, doesn't know much.
Who was it sold all our gold reserves at such a knock down price ?
Who made it 'tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime' ?
Who led us into an illegal war, with no exit plan, just so they could kowtow to the USA ?

I am not a Conservative/Lib Dem supporter, but neither am I so narrow minded as to consider voting for only ever 1 Party - NONE of them are any good, and only their for themselves.

To the guy who said he hadn't voted since 78, till someone brings back the death penalty and public flogging...maybe he migt wish to go and spend a few months in Saudi, or any other Sharia led/Dictatorship Regime.....you might just change your mind.

(Can tell its the off season can't you.....)