[joeysteele]

Originally Posted by MTVN

What do you suggest though joey? Sure, the Lib Dems have gone back on their pledge but I think we all knew that was inevitable when the coalition was formed. It was a marriage of convenience, of practicality, and there would always have to be significant compromises considering the differences in idealogy

Lib Dem voters may not like it but at the end of they day we were left with 3 options following the election, either:
We have a Tory minority government, and be left without a strong government when we were in such need of one
A Lib-Lab minority government which would leave us with the same problem, and also an unelected Prime Minister
The Con-Lib coalition, giving the country the Prime Minister they wanted more than any other, and a strong majaority government

Neither of those were good choices, noone wants a hung parliament, but the Con-Lib coalition was the best option in my opinion. The Lid Dem voters may be unhappy but the reality is that if they weren't in government they'd be sitting there with their 50-odd seats, and have very little say in matters. So while the students may be unhappy, they should face up to the reality of the situation if you ask me

Well, I would first of all hope that you would at least half agree that all through the election campaign there was little expectancy of any party winning an outright majority and also that a hung parliament was the likely outcome, no one surely seriously believed the Lib Dems were ever going to win outright themselves.
So the Lib Dems made their firm promises in light of that fact too.

The rise in tuition fees doesn't really hurt me much,it will some people I know though and also many others in the future.

I was a voter,the parties suggested to me what they would do, I listened,I decided to give my vote to the party I, at that time, trusted most on most things not just tuition fees,from what they promised they would do.

Personally,I think the Lib Dems were foolish to make such binding promises to the electorate and Students in particular.
Labour made a massive mess of things but if even they could devise a policy whereby these fees did not need to increase, then I am sure as a compromise and there are always compromises that can be made,that the Conservatives could have agreed to some too.

I do think, as to cuts and the rise in VAT, that without the Lib Dems the VAT rise may have been greater and that also they may have tempered the overall spending cuts too.
I didn't choose the LibDem policy on fees though, they did and promised, a cast iron promise, that they would always oppose an increase in tuition fees.

I agree with you absolutely that Labour had to be out, I was also pleased at the formation of the coalition at first,but to me a promise is a promise.

Having said that I agree compromises had to be made,you are right that the coalition has to take the big picture and not just a snapshot of what needs to be done.
As I said, and you too MTVN may never agree with me either,the promises once made should not be dropped without referral back to the people who trusted their votes to a party on that basis.
I believed the Lib Dems wanted to clean up politics not smear it more.

If we can persuade the Lib Dems or even just enough of them not to support these measures, then Students feel they have to try to do so.
If we fail,we fail but at least will have tried, not that we will get anywhere with silly brainless fighting or damage to vehicles, buildings etc; That of course is unacceptable and rediculous.

I know to you and others, I am speaking from a selfish platform it seems.
I am aware that there is a mess to sort out and I applaud many of the Con-Lib decisions already made.

I was brought up though to believe that someones word should be their bond, the Lib Dems should not have been so foolish maybe to promise so firmly that they would never support increases in the fees but they chose to,and they likely got many thousands of extra votes and held a great many more and won and held seats on that promise on that issue alone.

To break such a publicly freely given cast iron promise shows a lack of integrity,I thought the Lib Dems had that,now I feel as many millions of others do from their poll ratings that there is little integrity in them either now.

I enjoyed reading your post and do agree with a lot of it and agree a coalition was the best way of stable govt at this time,at least we can agree with that although I know overall you diasgree more with me.
I know I sound like a broken record probably but to me a promise is a promise and should be binding.

My protest will be done at the ballot box,at every opportunity I get, European elections, Local Elections or even in by-elections if the chance arises.
I have a feeling I will be joined by many millions more in the backlash of voting against the Lib Dems on that betrayal and that their Councillors will fall massively at next years local elections for a start.