Being Mrs C

An insight into the things in life that make me smile

  • Working With Mrs C
  • Ladybird Tuesday
  • Thrifty Mrs C
  • Travel
  • Children’s Books
  • Privacy Policy and Disclosure

Election 2015 – Round 1

08/01/2015

Election 2015

If you live in the UK you must have been living under a stone if you haven’t noticed that there’s going to be a General Election in May this year. Here we are just a week in to 2015 and already all the political parties seem to be setting off in full election mode determined to get our votes in what is possibly going to be one of the closest run elections that we’ve had for many years.

The mainstream media is obviously already starting to get excited about this, but it may seem a bit early to start blogging about it, apart from the fact that in my ward in St Albans we’re actually off to the polls somewhat sooner than May as we have a Council by-election later this month. Both of the Councillors for Marshalswick South have resigned, one of them only 40 days after being elected to office!

So, what’s going on?

The answer it seems is simple – personal political ambition. Both these ladies have resigned to stand as MPs for the Conservatives in this year’s general election. One just over the county border in Cambridgeshire (although depending which online newspaper you read she may or may not have been dropped as their candidate already) and the second for a consistency over 200 miles away in Lancashire. It seems that in both cases their own political ambitions are far more important to them than keeping any promises that they’ve made to their local constituents.

To be honest the whole situation leave me furious and clearly demonstrates the problem with politics today. So many people in politics seem to be obsessed with the idea of becoming a politician rather than actually being there to represent people and to work for their local community. MPs sit in Westminster to represent their constituency, yet there are MPs, and those standing for election as MPs, who don’t actually have anything to do with the constituency at all before they stood for office. Instead they are prepared to move around the country in their attempts to gain power. But how is this helping the people that they want to vote for them?

Here in St Albans our MP doesn’t live in the city at all, and even got caught up in the whole expenses mess when it was (allegedly) disclosed that her daughter was living in the flat that she claimed expenses for instead of her. OK, so she lives a commutable distance away from both St Albans and Westminster and doesn’t actually need a city home to do her job, but how on earth can she represent us fully if she’s not living or working here to experience what life is really like? How are constituents supposed to relate to and trust a politician who doesn’t understand or relate to them.

It seems that if you get a party politician that is any good (and who has political aspirations) then they are removed from their local community to stand for a seat that the party wants to gain elsewhere. How is that the best thing for the public? And how would it ever give a community any confidence in that political party?

I’m not sure I understand how local politics and national politics can sit hand in hand. It may well be that a local candidate (whether for Council or Parliament) is the best for the job in terms of what is right for that Ward or Constituency, but that doesn’t mean that they represent the political party that you would want to support at national level. They may stand for a party whose manifesto you disagree with in some way, but should you still vote for them if they would actually do the best job of representing you and your community at Council or national level? Is it possible to have a political party where you agree with everything they say in their manifesto? Should we actually have two votes – one for who we want as our MP and a second for which politician party we want in power? Is the political system in the UK just broken?

I’m off to go and quiz some local candidates about their political aspirations…

Related

«
»

Filed Under: Current Affairs, Politics 12 Comments

Comments

  1. Donna @ Little Lilypad Co says

    08/01/2015 at 10:38 am

    Politics on the whole frustrates me! I can feel the passion in this post, I think may be you should run for local council!!! You would do a grand job x

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      09/01/2015 at 11:45 am

      Part of me would love to Donna, but the “problem” is that I wouldn’t want to do so representing any of the political parties and to do so as an independent would just take too much work right now.

      Reply
  2. Sonya Cisco says

    08/01/2015 at 10:52 am

    Am nt surprised you are cross- being a councillor is a commitment not a stepping stone in a career and they should have seen out their term.

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      09/01/2015 at 11:51 am

      I completely agree Sonya!

      Reply
  3. Polka Dot Family says

    08/01/2015 at 11:14 am

    I have to confess that I am not really up to speed with politics, they all seem as bad as each other however I think it was time that both myself and others started taking a more active interest otherwise how can we complain about the state of our country if we voted them into power?

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      09/01/2015 at 11:52 am

      Totally agree. I get really annoyed at people who moan about the state of things then when you ask if they votes say something like “oh I can’t be bothered with politics” Grrrrr

      Reply
  4. Otilia Stocks says

    08/01/2015 at 6:49 pm

    Politics so very confusing as they all dissappoint at some point 🙁

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      09/01/2015 at 11:53 am

      They certainly do Otilia!

      Reply
  5. Carolin says

    09/01/2015 at 9:26 am

    I would never want to work in politics. It’s such a minefield

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      09/01/2015 at 11:53 am

      A complete minefield, but one filled with people who seem to be only in it for personal gain.

      Reply
  6. Mark Pedroz says

    24/01/2015 at 6:49 pm

    I’ve the lead Lib Dem candidate in the MWS by-election and I can assure you I have no Westminster ambitions. I’ve lived in St Albans for nearly 17 years, over 15 in Marshalswick South, and I just want to do a good job for local people, improving services and road safety and opposing building on green belt land.

    Reply
    • Penny BlogsPenny Carr says

      25/01/2015 at 2:30 pm

      Very pleased to hear it Mark – and thank you for your comment. I just wish that all people standing actually cared so passionately about local issues. Heck, one other party even has a candidate standing that doesn’t even live within reasonable walking distance from the ward I notice…

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Where to find Penny online

Penny Blogs

Penny Travels

Penny Plays

Penny Reads

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Google Ads

Spice of Life CAL

Spice of Life CAL

Top Posts

  • Delia's Plum & Cinnamon Oat Slices
  • Bring Joy To Your Achy Joints
  • Ladybird Tuesday: my day
  • When wind turbines are beautiful
  • Ladybird Tuesday: Learning to Crochet
  • Ladybird Tuesday: The Public Services - Water Supply
  • Having the confidence to wear a dress everyday
  • Review: Little Princess Hama Bead Gift Box
  • Halloween Hama Beads
  • Ladybird Tuesday: The Frozen Planet of Azuron

Top 20 Parent Bloggers on Twitter 2014

Tots100

Hotter Shoes Blogger Family

Hotter Shoes

Tots 100

TOTS100 - UK Parent Blogs
TOTS100

Search Being Mrs C

Categories

Baking Being green Books Charity Children Children's Books Christmas Competitions Crafts Crochet Current Affairs d Days Out Education Fashion Film Food and Drink Gardening Going out Health & Fitness Home Household stuff Knitting Ladybird Tuesday Life Little Miss C Master C Nature Nice things Outdoors Parenting Reviews seven days Sewing St Albans Stationery Summer 2014 Television Thrifty Thrifty Mrs C Toys Travel Uncategorized Vintage Vlogmas

BritMums

BritMums - Leading the Conversation

Mumsnet Bloggers Network

mumsnet

Google Adsense

  • Working With Mrs C
  • Ladybird Tuesday
  • Thrifty Mrs C
  • Travel
  • Children’s Books
  • Privacy Policy and Disclosure

Copyright © 2021 · Design by Stacey Corrin

Copyright © 2021 · Adorn Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in