Politics
Clegg & Cameron Unite!
May 14th
It has been a week now since the general election, which saw Britain left with a hung parliament for the first time since 1974, as no party claimed an overall majority of the vote.
Since last Thursday, major changes have occured in our government, with the nation waving Labour’s Gordon Brown out of Downing Street and applauding the duo of David Cameron and Nick Clegg in. A previously unfathomable pairing, the leaders of the Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats have formed what is known as a coalition government, meaning that the two parties have joined forces in order to gain a majority of the seats in Parliament.
source: guardian.co.uk
With Cameron as our new Prime Minister and Clegg as his deputy, the partnership seems an unlikely one and the press have likened the duo to all sorts, including Morecambe and Wise, or Ant and Dec! However, whilst the initial back patting and friendly banter between the two leaders is all very well, we have to question what this means for the country.
These two men were seemingly at opposite ends of the spectrum just a week ago, with Cameron describing Nick Clegg as his favourite joke, suggesting that for the Conservatives, the Lib Dems are just a means to an end. For with Cameron in place as PM, many speculate that another general election is not far away, some even claiming it to be less than a year from now. This would supposedly see the end of the coalition, with perhaps the Conservatives most likely to take a majority vote, providing Cameron doesn’t have a catastrophic first year as PM.
However, for now, the cynicism most view this coalition with must be set aside. Cameron and Clegg have promised 5 years of this ‘new politics’ and the new cabinet ministers provide a spattering of places for Lib Dem MPs, including Vince Cable, who achieved a somewhat cult like status during the election campaign. Yet with dissent being reported amongst the ranks of Conservative back bench politicians already, the nation watches and waits to see just how this double act pans out.
General Election drawing closer
May 4th
The day of reckoning is almost upon us.
Yes that’s right, the day everyone toddles down to their polling station to mark an ‘X’ on a piece of paper and decide who will be running our country for the foreseeable future.
All the parties are out campaigning hard in these final few days, hoping to convince anyone who is still undecided to put a cross next to their party’s name. The polls are still pointing to a Tory victory but most of the comment surrounding the election seems to point to a hung parliament. If, like some of us here at Smoke HQ, you are a bit confused about the finer details of a hung parliament, take a look at exactly what it entails.
source: guardian.co.uk
Leaders debate fallout
Apr 29th
Is this our future prime minister?
The final leaders debate has just finished and Smoke want to know what you think.
David Cameron got a bit of a hammering from Gordon Brown and seemed to refuse to answer any questions aimed at him in a straight forward manner.
Brown successfully managed to dodge any mention of his actions yesterday and arguably performed much better this evening than he has done in the previous events.
But again it appears that it is Nick Clegg who has come out on top. Whilst Brown and Cameron were busy insulting each other, again the Lib Dem leader delivered his responses in a calm and convincing manner.
If you want to continue following the aftermath from the debate, Smoke recommend you keep yourself tuned to the BBC for reaction from all the parties.
Tonight on the BBC …
Apr 29th
… is the final leaders debate.
Clegg, Brown and Cameron will battle it out for the third time live on television, answering questions from a live audience in Birmingham, with a strong focus on the economy and public spending cuts.
The general consensus is that Nick Clegg has come out on top during the previous to debates, do you think he can make it three in a row?
There is also particular pressure on Gordon Brown after his day from hell yesterday. We are taking bets as to how long it will take someone to mention ‘bigotgate’ to Gordon Brown – surely Cameron won’t be able to resist having a pop at the prime minister?
source: telegraph.co.uk
General Election: the lowdown
Apr 20th
Aside from the very important elections about who will be running our student union next year, there is also the small matter of deciding which political party will be running the country for the foreseeable future.
For many of us this is the first General Election we have been allowed to vote in and getting to grips with who to give your vote to can be tricky. If you want some more information on the main parties and a helping hand deciding who to vote for on May 6th check out the links below that Smoke have compiled together …
The main parties
We all know the three main parties in the UK are Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. Each party website has their current manifesto and general information about the party. A great place to start if you are undecided on who to vote for and want some more details.
Major news sources
All the major news sources have dedicated sections to the General Election which are updated on a daily basis. Our favourites are The Guardian’s live blog which covers a wide range of topics in a interesting and digestible manner. Not to be outdone, the BBC also offer a great service in particular the interactive poll tracker. Here you can take a look at how each party is fairing in the various polls and how support has changed over time.
If you’ve got any good websites for tracking the election, let us know and we can share them with the rest of the student population!
10 years longer for knife murder.
Nov 10th
The Justice Secretary, Jack Straw announced today that the minimum sentence for knife murder will rise from 15 to 25 years.
Ben Kinsella was stabbed to death last June. Source: thesun.co.uk
The decision comes after Ben Kinsella was stabbed 11 times in Islington, North London in June last year along with many other victims. His family, including his sister, former EastEnders star Brooke Kinsella, have been appealing for the law to be changed. They have also launched numerous campaigns to highlight the dangers of knife crime. In London last year, knife crime claimed the lives of 16 teenagers in six months.
Kinsella’s murderers were each given three life sentences and forced to serve a minimum of 19 years. A sentence that the majority of the UK has seen as too lenient. Straw has said that he will be writing to the Kinsella family to let them know the outcome. The changes are expected to be discussed in the Commons before Christmas.
The justice secretary also claimed that he would do everything in his power to tackle this “menace of knife crime on our streets.” It is also thought that the review could be used in conjunction with the sentencing for gun crime which currently stands at a minimum of 30 years.
The shadow justice secretary, Dominic Grieve welcomed the idea but thought it would just be another “empty gesture” where the increase in sentencing would cut down on prison space and the ability to have more police patrols on the streets.
Do you think that the increase in sentencing is a good thing? Will it help cut down on knife crime? Will the available space in prison be reduced as an effect of these changes? Smoke Radio would like to know your views.
VAT will not rise dead on midnight
Nov 3rd
The government has announced that the VAT cut will apply for an extra six hours after Big Ben chimes to welcome in the new year.
The rate of value added tax (VAT) was cut in December 2008 from 17.5 per cent to 15 per cent to help the UK during the economic downturn. It was believed that the rate would return to its original 17.5 per cent at the beginning of 2010. However it has now been decided that the rate will change at 6:00 am on New Years Day instead.
The news will come as a nice surprise to many people who will be out celebrating the New Year in pubs, bars and clubs across the United Kingdom. It means that such establishments can continue to charge the lower VAT rates well into the early hours of the morning. That means cheaper drinks and a less expensive way to see in 2010!
As students, Smoke Radio sees this decision as an important one, especially seeing as many of you will be out in London or back home seeing in the new year with a few beverages! And we all know that drinks can get expensive, especially on New Years Eve. We must however stress that we do not condone binge drinking and this could be a factor shadow ministers highlight if the prices are going to stay the same.
Treasury minister, Stephen Timms told Parliament that the decision would be a “welcome change” for businesses because they would not have to risk the confusion of changing their prices at midnight. A process that could also potentially anger customers.
So, have the government got it right? Do you think it is a good idea to extend the low VAT rate for New Years Eve? And would you be angry if pubs, clubs and bars had to change their prices at midnight?
