Those of you who know me or are regular readers of this blog will know that I'm, somewhat naively, a fan of good Democracy and the democratic process. So it will come as no surprise why my gears are so well and truly ground.
Also before I start I should say this is not aimed at hard working Labour activists, councillors or MPs but the party machine and those who use the following technique on the doorstep - you know who you are!
Unless you have been living in a cave for the last few months you'll know there is an election on Thursday for some local authorities (not Medway) and more importantly the European Parliament.
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| This kind of thing really grinds my gears. |
Also before I start I should say this is not aimed at hard working Labour activists, councillors or MPs but the party machine and those who use the following technique on the doorstep - you know who you are!
Unless you have been living in a cave for the last few months you'll know there is an election on Thursday for some local authorities (not Medway) and more importantly the European Parliament.
The LibDems (at least on a local level) have been campaigning for the merits of the EU over Grand Isolation which UKIP seem to espousing. National politics has not been used unless brought up by the voter.
This election is not about the cuts.
So imagine my confusion when I saw a tweet with ten reasons to vote Labour on Thursday. (here) with a link to the Labour page with Ed's pledges for what Labour would do if they won the next election.
Want a reason to vote Labour in six days’ time? Let’s not stop at one, here’s ten: http://t.co/caCiKSwdw6
— Iain McNicol (@IainMcNicol) May 16, 2014
Clearly it would be argued that this meant the General election next year and it is a mere coincidence that this list has appeared now at this election.
Can this behaviour be just attributed to a small dirty tricks brigade?
Well, no.
I've seen a lot of tweets locally about the toxic nature of Clegg and it makes me wonder how much campaigning on Europe vs. National policy there has been but that is just supposition.
Who sent the original tweet? Was it an activist trying to cause confusion? It was some guy called Iain McNicol - the General secretary of the Labour party - surely he would think he knew what elections were taking place on Thursday?
This is not the first time that this has happened either, indeed shadow minister Chuka Umunna tweeted (back in may 2012 here)
Cameron is running a heartless and hopeless government #voteLabour today for growth, jobs and to relive the squeeze on you and your family.
Which was interesting as it was Local and mayoral elections with no impact on Westminster what so ever!
It is little wonder that candidates are secretly venting their frustration at Ed et al. Local PPC and Councillor, Tristan Osborne was unfortunate to get caught on tape out lining his concerns with leadership etc.
It is telling that a PPC selected for one of the top 101 target seats against a formidable and capable Tory MP (Tracey Crouch) is showing these sort of concerns.
How can they appeal to the average voter if they can't even tell the truth about what the election on Thursday is for? Or have any policies on Europe?
If I cannot trust them on these two fundamentals how can I trust them with pledges or my taxes?
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