A little prediction

[same_difference]

'Labour will win, with a decreased majority, but a significant majority all the same. This will be shortly followed by tax rises.'

Cynical I know, but as I've always said the worst thing about being a cynic is being right almost all of the time. This isn't the result I want, btw, but the problem with democracy is everyone else* getting to vote.

*Everyone else excludes those I respect, i.e. my friends.

Comments

[baloonworld.livejournal.com]

The restrictions I think you are talking about are things like the minimum wage, maximum working hours, minimum working age, etc. These restrictions only effect employers; it is illegal to pay less than x pounds an hour, it is not illegal to work for less than x pounds an hour.

As for left wing governments restricting individual actions more than their comparatively extreme right wing counterparts, this is simply not true. Center-left parties simply do not dictate what positions you are allowed to make love in.
Mili, incidentally claims to have been more free under Communism than she is currently. Despite this she still exercises her freedom to consume.

Shifting the electoral boundaries around to give your party an advantage is called gerrymandering. The current case of UK politics, however, has arisen though inaction as the public moved. The only changes since last time was the merging of a bunch of safe Labor seats in Scotland, effectively shrinking the Labor majority before the election started.
Labor /had/ made a manifesto pledge last time to look into the whole system. They even assigned a committee, which said to change the voting system (I think to STV, as is used by Bath SU). Then they waited for a bit. Then a few years passed. Then they had another election using first past the post.

Oh and I forgot to say!

[baloonworld.livejournal.com]

don't feel too down; the new Tory MPs are much more like real people than the bulk of the Conservitive Party, and a significent improvement on the rest of the Parlimentry Conservitive Party.

[same-difference.livejournal.com]

But merging the Scottish seats, did make Gordon Brown's Labour seat, much safer by increasing his majority there.

Did they make new seats elsewhere to keep the numbers the same, or are there less seats now?

[baloonworld.livejournal.com]

there are 13 fewer seats now, I think.