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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » The Unite to Remain Alliance: The seats where one of the Green

SystemSystem Posts: 11,008
edited November 2019 in General

imagepoliticalbetting.com » Blog Archive » The Unite to Remain Alliance: The seats where one of the Greens/the LDs or PC will be given a clear run

The LDS and Greens are standing aside for Plaid Cymru in the following Welsh seats:

Read the full story here


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Comments

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    eggegg Posts: 1,749
    First! At last!
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    RobCLRobCL Posts: 23
    egg said:

    First! At last!

    Well that answers that question
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    dyedwooliedyedwoolie Posts: 7,786
    The LDs might pick up the greens no votes in most of those
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818
    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

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    eggegg Posts: 1,749
    RobCL said:

    egg said:

    First! At last!

    Well that answers that question
    LOL.
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    kle4kle4 Posts: 91,645
    Not a bad deal that's been struck by the alliance, probably took a lot of wrangling.

    On GE news I wonder if the Tories realised they'll never be able out splurge labour.
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    ChrisChris Posts: 11,098
    "Labour has seen its poll ratings drop at least 15% from the 41% it achieved GE2017 ..."

    Very misleading.

    In only four of the last ten GB polls reported by Britain Elects has Labour dropped 15 or more points below 41%.

    Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
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    Scrapheap_as_wasScrapheap_as_was Posts: 10,059
    edited November 2019
    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?
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    dyedwooliedyedwoolie Posts: 7,786
    edited November 2019
    Boris is offering the chance to get Brexit done then, after 5 years of Tory awfulness, he'll pull down his trousers for an electoral spanking.
    It's an offer the electorate will accept.
    I see Austin was joined by Mann for a joint presser.......
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    The most interesting one for me is the LDs have stood down in Bristol West. Got to now give the Greens a real shot of getting a second seat.

    Quite surprised at why Cannock Chase is included in the pact though - seems to me the last place that is ever likely to vote Green!
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    rkrkrkrkrkrk Posts: 7,907
    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.
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    dyedwooliedyedwoolie Posts: 7,786
  • Options

    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    No, only the ones you are in agreement on. In this case they are basing it on the assumption that one policy (Brexit) is more important than all others.
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    El_CapitanoEl_Capitano Posts: 3,870

    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    Layla Moran has always been a very environment-friendly MP in Oxford West & Abingdon, where the Greens stood aside for her last time (and are doing so again).
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818
    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    The Greens standing down won't make much difference because they didn't get many votes in the first place in most of the seats.

    The interesting seats are where the LDs are standing down — and it looks like the majority of them are not Conservative seats.
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    NickPalmerNickPalmer Posts: 21,321
    rkrkrk said:

    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.

    There a British Polling Council issue here. If a pollster does a poll with 10 questions and the client releases 2 of them, the pollster is required to release the other 8. But if they do 10 separate but simultaneous polls, does that still apply?
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818

    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    No, only the ones you are in agreement on. In this case they are basing it on the assumption that one policy (Brexit) is more important than all others.
    I'm not sure voters will see it that way. I reckon the parties involved are not as clever as they think they are.
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    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395

    The most interesting one for me is the LDs have stood down in Bristol West. Got to now give the Greens a real shot of getting a second seat.

    Quite surprised at why Cannock Chase is included in the pact though - seems to me the last place that is ever likely to vote Green!

    Also the LDs used to be regarded as the main opposition to Labour in Cannock Chase local elections, which means a lot of Tory-minded voters used to support them. (Although the Greens do have a number of councillors there).
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    rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,924

    The LDs might pick up the greens no votes in most of those

    This will make little difference in most of these seats. Firstly, voters are not chattels, that can be pushed from party to party. Secondly, most of these seats are unlikely to be close enough that it makes a difference.

    However, I could see it having an impact in a couple of seats. The Greens were second on 28% in 2015 in Bristol West. It's a volatile, student heavy seat. That may have an impact. And I suspect the LDs will see a small benefit in London.
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    NickPalmerNickPalmer Posts: 21,321
    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.
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    ChrisChris Posts: 11,098

    The most interesting one for me is the LDs have stood down in Bristol West. Got to now give the Greens a real shot of getting a second seat.

    Quite surprised at why Cannock Chase is included in the pact though - seems to me the last place that is ever likely to vote Green!

    A forest is a really green place. I believe quite a large proportion of the population in that constituency is living in conditions which have changed very little since the coming of the Saxons.
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    rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,924

    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
    It's not? Damn it, my neighbour's really hot.
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818

    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    Layla Moran has always been a very environment-friendly MP in Oxford West & Abingdon, where the Greens stood aside for her last time (and are doing so again).
    Fair enough but I'm thinking more about taxation. Some of the constituencies the lib dems crave are chock full of high earners and high achievers.

    High taxation policy will not go down well.
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    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
    I think the coalition 2010-2015 and mutual ownership of policies is a good analogy too...
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818

    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
    LOL I love that comparison but I'm not sure it holds.
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    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    No, only the ones you are in agreement on. In this case they are basing it on the assumption that one policy (Brexit) is more important than all others.
    I'm not sure voters will see it that way. I reckon the parties involved are not as clever as they think they are.
    I think it is sensible. There will be some voters that it will have no impact on. I am a Tory-LD switcher, but I could not bring myself to vote for the nutcases in the semi-communist Green Party, neither would I vote for nationalists if I were Welsh.

    It might make a little bit of difference to a couple of seats. The message of cooperation is potentially the real crux of the strategy. A grown up cooperative party versus to tribal blue and red parties. It works well for me.
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943
    Notice Labour are not included in the Remain Alliance.

    Corbyn Labour thus risks getting crushed between Leavers going Tory or Brexit Party and Remainers going LD, Green, SNP or Plaid
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    rcs1000 said:

    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
    It's not? Damn it, my neighbour's really hot.
    lol
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    rkrkrkrkrkrk Posts: 7,907

    rkrkrk said:

    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.

    There a British Polling Council issue here. If a pollster does a poll with 10 questions and the client releases 2 of them, the pollster is required to release the other 8. But if they do 10 separate but simultaneous polls, does that still apply?
    Interesting question. British polling council rules say:

    "However, in the event the results of a privately commissioned poll are made public as a result of actions by the organisation [its employees or agents] that commissioned the survey, such results will be deemed to have entered the public domain and procedures outlined above will be followed in respect of those findings. The client and survey organisation may keep other findings (that have not been published) confidential except where such findings are relevant to the topics covered in questions that have entered the public domain or where the question order is relevant to the published results. "

    http://www.britishpollingcouncil.org/objects-and-rules/

    So I guess the question is whether a poll in one constituency is *relevant* to a poll in another question. My guess would be that it is not. This is surely an area that needs looking at, with all this stuff going round about tactical voting. If you do enough polls, eventually you'll get a wide range of results.
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818
    HYUFD said:

    Notice Labour are not included in the Remain Alliance.

    Corbyn Labour thus risks getting crushed between Leavers going Tory or Brexit Party and Remainers going LD, Green, SNP or Plaid

    IF the lib dems stood aside for Corbynites they could forget Esher and Walton.

    They could forget Kingston and Surbiton, come to that.
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    rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,924
    rkrkrk said:

    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.

    While I'm with you on the under 40 bet (I think they'll score in the low to mid-20s), I'm not sure the constituency polling argument holds water.

    It seems that they're dribbling the polls out to maximise their newsworthiness, so it's hard to read too much into where has not been released yet. (And I also suspect they'll not bother polling in their existing seats, because (a) they might get bad news, and (b) it costs money to poll.)
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943
    kle4 said:

    Not a bad deal that's been struck by the alliance, probably took a lot of wrangling.

    On GE news I wonder if the Tories realised they'll never be able out splurge labour.

    They don't need to, just neutralise the issue and attack on tax cuts and Brexit
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818
    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    I just don;t see how you can be pro union if you stand down for nationalists. And I'm not sure voters will.
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    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.

    Cambridge is held by LAB
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    BromBrom Posts: 3,760
    edited November 2019
    I think reading the comments on facebook and looking at the headlines Labour's economic spending has a bit of a credibility problem (no shit).

    People saw the £350m on the bus and thought of it as a plausible number, people are looking at McDonnell's 150 billion headline number and are just seeing 'spend, spend, spend' and let's be honest it is a ridiculous number for the public that just doesn't ring true (even if an economic assessment broke down the numbers and suggested it to be achievable).

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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137
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    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.

    Cambridge is held by LAB
    It must be a high priority for LDs though? The Greens would probably pick up a reasonable vote from the student vote. maybe they are still in discussion?
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    rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,924

    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    I just don;t see how you can be pro union if you stand down for nationalists. And I'm not sure voters will.
    It's possible that voters in Wales will hear that argument. It's vanishingly unlikely voters in England will. And with the SNP and the LDs at each others' throats in Scotland, I don't reckon it'll get much playtime there.
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    rcs1000 said:

    rkrkrk said:

    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.

    While I'm with you on the under 40 bet (I think they'll score in the low to mid-20s), I'm not sure the constituency polling argument holds water.

    It seems that they're dribbling the polls out to maximise their newsworthiness, so it's hard to read too much into where has not been released yet. (And I also suspect they'll not bother polling in their existing seats, because (a) they might get bad news, and (b) it costs money to poll.)
    If the LDs won a seat at GE2017 when they got 7.6% of the national vote they'd expect to hold it at GE2019. In South West London many activists will be focussed on Dominic Raab's Esher & Walton seat which borders Twickenham and Kingston. It was interesting that Swinson went there yesterday on the first day of the campaign.
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    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.

    Cambridge is held by LAB
    It must be a high priority for LDs though? The Greens would probably pick up a reasonable vote from the student vote. maybe they are still in discussion?
    The Survation poll in Cambridge had the LDs clearly ahead
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    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    Ouch! You could swap the name Jeremy Corbyn for the name Boris Johnson and it would still work.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    HYUFD said:

    Notice Labour are not included in the Remain Alliance.

    Corbyn Labour thus risks getting crushed between Leavers going Tory or Brexit Party and Remainers going LD, Green, SNP or Plaid

    I'm puzzled by many of the seats in the Remain Alliance because a lot of them are not Conservative seats nor seats the Tories have any serious hope of winning.
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    contrariancontrarian Posts: 5,818
    Could 'Mainstream' be the party name centrists have been looking for for decades?
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    rkrkrkrkrkrk Posts: 7,907
    rcs1000 said:

    rkrkrk said:

    Lib dems are clearly polling in their target constituencies. Yet we have only seen a few polls released, which as OGH says all show a rosy picture. I think it's reasonable to assume there are a few polls they are holding back.

    Coupled with Mr. Meeks analysis previously, I'm feeling good about my lib dems under 40 seats bet.

    While I'm with you on the under 40 bet (I think they'll score in the low to mid-20s), I'm not sure the constituency polling argument holds water.

    It seems that they're dribbling the polls out to maximise their newsworthiness, so it's hard to read too much into where has not been released yet. (And I also suspect they'll not bother polling in their existing seats, because (a) they might get bad news, and (b) it costs money to poll.)
    Newsworthiness might be one angle for waiting - I hadn't considered that.

    But if you want to convince people in constituency X that you are the main alternative to the Tories, and you have a poll that says that, I'd have thought you'd want to get that message out early and often and cement it in the minds of potential voters.
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    rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,924
    Morning all. I'm on my way to Des Moines, Iowa. Now, I'm not sure if it's been noted yet, but the latest poll shows Warren (20%) and Buttigieg (19%) holding a small lead over Sanders (17%) and Biden (15%).

    I'll let you know what I learn in Iowa.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395

    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.

    There's no chance of either the Tories or the Brexit Party winning Cambridge. No point in having a Remain Alliance there I would have thought.
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    Is Heidi still a LibDem? SKY had a caption for her that read "Former LibDem and chair of Unite to Remain".
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    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    I just don;t see how you can be pro union if you stand down for nationalists. And I'm not sure voters will.
    I suspect it is a calculation that voters will understand the motivation and not really care. It is based on the "if Hitler were to invade Hell" principle.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    Electoral Calculus forecast updated: Con majority = 96.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html
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    PierrotPierrot Posts: 112
    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    John Woodcock didn't resign the Labour whip. He had it removed from him following allegations of sexual harassment. Yet he calls Jeremy Corbyn, who has always retained the Labour whip, a disgrace to the party?
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    rcs1000 said:

    AS well as endorsing an independent Wales, are the lib dems supporting the taxation policies of the greens?

    That may be of interest in the leafy constituencies they crave.


    I would think the answer to both is no. If you agree to cooperate to help take your neighbour's kids to school, you are not necessarily also agreeing a "swinging" arrangement between the households.
    It's not? Damn it, my neighbour's really hot.
    Where does he fit on a scale of 1-10?
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943
    edited November 2019

    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    I just don;t see how you can be pro union if you stand down for nationalists. And I'm not sure voters will.
    Wales voted Leave and the Tories and Labour are the top 2 parties, politically it is no different to England whereas Remain voting Scotland where the SNP are the largest party is a different story.

    Hence the LDs are fighting on an anti Tory and anti Corbyn Labour ticket in England and Wales and an anti SNP ticket in Scotland
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    ByronicByronic Posts: 3,578
    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.
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    RobDRobD Posts: 58,961
    AndyJS said:

    HYUFD said:

    Notice Labour are not included in the Remain Alliance.

    Corbyn Labour thus risks getting crushed between Leavers going Tory or Brexit Party and Remainers going LD, Green, SNP or Plaid

    I'm puzzled by many of the seats in the Remain Alliance because a lot of them are not Conservative seats nor seats the Tories have any serious hope of winning.
    Perhaps their leadership has been infiltrated by imperial leave spies?
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    XtrainXtrain Posts: 337
    Just completed a YouGov poll. It asked about my specific constituency and named all of the candidates.
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    ByronicByronic Posts: 3,578
    Pierrot said:

    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    John Woodcock didn't resign the Labour whip. He had it removed from him following allegations of sexual harassment. Yet he calls Jeremy Corbyn, who has always retained the Labour whip, a disgrace to the party?
    If Stalin called Hitler a c*nt, Stalin would be right, despite Stalin also being a c*nt.
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    Scrapheap_as_wasScrapheap_as_was Posts: 10,059
    edited November 2019
    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    A Liberal Democrat candidate who was told to step aside as part of a "Remain alliance" will now run as an independent.

    Mike Powell was asked to stand down in Pontypridd after the party entered into an electoral pact with Plaid Cymru and the Green Party.

    The deal between the three pro-Remain parties will see them not stand against each other in 60 constituencies across England and Wales.

    Mr Powell tells BBC Radio 4's World at One he was first informed about standing aside three weeks ago.

    "We had an NEC [national executive committee] meeting last night and basically were told, 'that’s it, you’re not standing'," he says.

    But Mr Powell doesn't believe he will split the Remain vote by running in the constituency.

    "I think the people deserve to have an opportunity to vote for someone who is going to represent the people of Pontypridd, rather than standing to represent a cause to remove Wales from the United Kingdom," he says - referring to Plaid Cymru's manifesto.

    "I know there are an awful lot of members in the Welsh Liberal Democrats who are extremely unhappy with the way these negotiations have been dealt with.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/election-2019-50325109
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    SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 20,581
    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    Xtrain said:

    Just completed a YouGov poll. It asked about my specific constituency and named all of the candidates.

    Interesting. Nominations don't close for another week.
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    Byronic said:

    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.

    Just watching BBC News - showing both economic policy launches.

    Corbyn/McDonnell, two white haired blokes slapping each other on the back vs Sajid Javid, a successful British Asian. The optics were quite startling.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395

    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    Yes, it looks more like gesture politics to me. Having a Remain Alliance in, say, Bristol West is a bit silly because it's already a constituency where only a Remain-supporting candidate can win.
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    CookieCookie Posts: 11,364
    AndyJS said:

    Electoral Calculus forecast updated: Con majority = 96.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html

    But Lab majority 12% chance!
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    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    I just don;t see how you can be pro union if you stand down for nationalists. And I'm not sure voters will.
    If you have FPTP it encourages smaller parties to make alliances. I might well be in a minority of one here but I would even welcome a LD/TBP alliance to get fairer representation in parliament for both.....and more importantly for the several million who will vote for those parties.

    Electoral pacts dont mean agreement with other parties policies, if they did agree they would merge not have a pact.
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    RobDRobD Posts: 58,961
    Cookie said:

    AndyJS said:

    Electoral Calculus forecast updated: Con majority = 96.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html

    But Lab majority 12% chance!
    Higher than Trump!
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    XtrainXtrain Posts: 337
    Well it named Chris Loder who is replacing Oliver Letwin although it's hardly a marginal.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    Heidi Allen on Sky News earlier today: "These are seats where it will make a difference". That doesn't seem to be the case in many of them.
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    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,903
    AndyJS said:

    Omissions on the list are interesting too. Cambridge, for instance.

    There's no chance of either the Tories or the Brexit Party winning Cambridge. No point in having a Remain Alliance there I would have thought.
    If you're the Lib Dems you probably want the Greens running there to siphen off a few socialist labour votes.
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    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    Layla Moran has always been a very environment-friendly MP in Oxford West & Abingdon, where the Greens stood aside for her last time (and are doing so again).
    Fair enough but I'm thinking more about taxation. Some of the constituencies the lib dems crave are chock full of high earners and high achievers.

    High taxation policy will not go down well.
    Who do you think is going to pay for Johnson's spending plans? It may be borrow now and pay tax later (plus interest), but big increase spending = increase taxes sooner or later.

    At least the LDs have the remain dividend to offset that.
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    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    They'd be standing aside for a party that neither has a policy of stopping Brexit, nor has any intention of reciprocating. They'd be killing themselves in all contests against the Tories where they'd be portrayed as Corbyn's helpers (further setting back their chances of stopping Brexit). They'd annihilate their chances of getting reasonable media coverage due to standing too few candidates, reducing their scope for gains/holds And, as Mike has said, the 2017 result is often an appalling guide, as constituency polls for example have demonstrated.

    Apart from that, good idea.
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    MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 50,095
    Cookie said:

    AndyJS said:

    Electoral Calculus forecast updated: Con majority = 96.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html

    But Lab majority 12% chance!
    But PM Swinson 1% chance. I think that meme has crashed and burned, Jo..... Although it always looked ludicrous.
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    148grss148grss Posts: 3,679
    With the current crop of local polls in LD targets showing LD gains higher than the national average and Lab losses higher the national average do we: a) think the LDs are doing better nationally and Lab are doing worse or b) that the losses and gains of LD and Lab are localised and therefore their vote shares will lead to more efficient distribution of seats? I have to say the general consensus amongst the knowing seems to be option b, which gives hope to Remain.
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    blueblueblueblue Posts: 875

    When you stand aside for another party, do you take ownership of their policies?

    I guess we are about to find out.

    Layla Moran has always been a very environment-friendly MP in Oxford West & Abingdon, where the Greens stood aside for her last time (and are doing so again).
    Fair enough but I'm thinking more about taxation. Some of the constituencies the lib dems crave are chock full of high earners and high achievers.

    High taxation policy will not go down well.
    Who do you think is going to pay for Johnson's spending plans? It may be borrow now and pay tax later (plus interest), but big increase spending = increase taxes sooner or later.

    At least the LDs have the remain dividend to offset that.
    They should know Boris isn't going to tax them, come what may.
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    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    They may do if it was reciprocated. The labour attitude unfortunately is non-labour means Tory, which is the height of arrogance!
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    DadgeDadge Posts: 2,038
    I think most PBers know of the Vote UK forum, but if you don't, hie thee over there for interesting debate and seat-by-seat analysis. https://twitter.com/dadge/status/1192444464796749832
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    So this is why Nigel Farage isn't standing in the general election.

    Johnny Marr scotches Smiths reunion rumours: 'Nigel Farage on guitar'

    Marr alluded to his political differences with Morrissey, after a fan asked about rumours of a 2020 tour spread by ‘a trusted source’

    https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/nov/07/johnny-marr-morriseey-smiths-reunion-rumours-nigel-farage-on-guitar
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    RobDRobD Posts: 58,961
    148grss said:

    With the current crop of local polls in LD targets showing LD gains higher than the national average and Lab losses higher the national average do we: a) think the LDs are doing better nationally and Lab are doing worse or b) that the losses and gains of LD and Lab are localised and therefore their vote shares will lead to more efficient distribution of seats? I have to say the general consensus amongst the knowing seems to be option b, which gives hope to Remain.

    Or they selected the most flattering polls to publish....
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    blueblueblueblue Posts: 875
    edited November 2019

    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    They'd be standing aside for a party that neither has a policy of stopping Brexit, nor has any intention of reciprocating. They'd be killing themselves in all contests against the Tories where they'd be portrayed as Corbyn's helpers (further setting back their chances of stopping Brexit). They'd annihilate their chances of getting reasonable media coverage due to standing too few candidates, reducing their scope for gains/holds And, as Mike has said, the 2017 result is often an appalling guide, as constituency polls for example have demonstrated.

    Apart from that, good idea.
    It's almost as if all the terrible side-effects you just listed were the feature of SandyRentool's suggestion, not the bug! :wink:
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    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    They'd be standing aside for a party that neither has a policy of stopping Brexit, nor has any intention of reciprocating. They'd be killing themselves in all contests against the Tories where they'd be portrayed as Corbyn's helpers (further setting back their chances of stopping Brexit). They'd annihilate their chances of getting reasonable media coverage due to standing too few candidates, reducing their scope for gains/holds And, as Mike has said, the 2017 result is often an appalling guide, as constituency polls for example have demonstrated.

    Apart from that, good idea.
    I think it would be plausible to find a middle ground. Remain alliance voluntarily stand down in 20 Labour seats where the MP is standing again and demonstrated clear will for remain outside of the Labour whips. Shows a gesture to Labour remainers, whilst keeping well away from the Labour leadership.
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    MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 50,095
    AndyJS said:

    Electoral Calculus forecast updated: Con majority = 96.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/homepage.html

    What was it before?
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    PierrotPierrot Posts: 112
    edited November 2019
    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    Why should a Plaid voter support the LD Unionists in Cardiff Central rather than vote Labour or abstain? Is the main attraction supposed to be that the LDs are promising to revoke Brexit without a referendum, something they obviously won't be in a position to do, their real aim being their age-old one of holding the balance of power in a hung parliament? Why not just vote Labour, hope for a Labour majority in the Commons - a far more realistic prospect than an LD majority - and look forward to voting Remain in the subsequent referendum? Plaid voters who are annoyed at Plaid pulling out may not flock to vote LD on Plaid leadership instructions.

    But what they do is a bit of an academic question given that there were fewer than 1000 Plaid voters in Cardiff Central in 2017 and Labour won a 17000 majority. They could all vote Tory for all the difference it will make to Labour.
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    MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 50,095
    I think the most important aspect of Unite To Remoan will prove to be that it means the Brexit Party stepping down from a bunch of seats will now just play as tit for tat without it harming the Tories as being in league with Farage.
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943
    edited November 2019

    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    The LDs want to stop and overtake Corbyn Labour as much as stop the Boris Tories
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    YBarddCwscYBarddCwsc Posts: 7,172

    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    A Liberal Democrat candidate who was told to step aside as part of a "Remain alliance" will now run as an independent.

    Mike Powell was asked to stand down in Pontypridd after the party entered into an electoral pact with Plaid Cymru and the Green Party.

    The deal between the three pro-Remain parties will see them not stand against each other in 60 constituencies across England and Wales.

    Mr Powell tells BBC Radio 4's World at One he was first informed about standing aside three weeks ago.

    "We had an NEC [national executive committee] meeting last night and basically were told, 'that’s it, you’re not standing'," he says.

    But Mr Powell doesn't believe he will split the Remain vote by running in the constituency.

    "I think the people deserve to have an opportunity to vote for someone who is going to represent the people of Pontypridd, rather than standing to represent a cause to remove Wales from the United Kingdom," he says - referring to Plaid Cymru's manifesto.

    "I know there are an awful lot of members in the Welsh Liberal Democrats who are extremely unhappy with the way these negotiations have been dealt with.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/election-2019-50325109
    Mike Powell is correct.

    In Wales, the LibDems and Plaid Cymru appeal to very, very different segments of the electorate.

    Plaid Cymru supporters in Western Montgomeryshire (probably ~ 2000)
    will not vote for the LibDems Londoner import.

    If the LibDems wanted this seat not to return a Tory, they should have found someone more local.
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    OT but on the subject of voting reform: https://xkcd.com/2225/
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,943
    Byronic said:

    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.

    Yes, this GE Corbyn may finally get the sub Foot 1983 trouncing he should have got in 2017 if it was not for May's dementia tax gaffe and Remainers tactically voting Labour. Labour will be down to its socialist core
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    Byronic said:

    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.

    We are seeing the consequence of so many Labour MPs walking away from the party due to Corbyn. They are now free to criticise him in a way that a Labour MP standing for re-election is not.

    On the other hand, the 2017 surge didn't really gather momentum until after the manifestos were published, and that is still in our future.
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    RobD said:

    AndyJS said:

    HYUFD said:

    Notice Labour are not included in the Remain Alliance.

    Corbyn Labour thus risks getting crushed between Leavers going Tory or Brexit Party and Remainers going LD, Green, SNP or Plaid

    I'm puzzled by many of the seats in the Remain Alliance because a lot of them are not Conservative seats nor seats the Tories have any serious hope of winning.
    Perhaps their leadership has been infiltrated by imperial leave spies?
    "It is a period of civil war. REMAINER spaceships, striking from a hidden base, have won their first electoral victory against the evil TORY EMPIRE. During the campaign, Remainer spies managed to steal secret plans to the Tories' ultimate weapon, the NO-DEAL BREXIT, an armoured space station with enough power to destroy an entire nation's economy!

    Pursued by the Tories' sinister agents, Princess Jo Heidi races home aboard her battle-bus, custodian of the stolen plans that can save her deposit and restore Freedom of Movement to the Continent…"
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    woody662woody662 Posts: 255
    Pierrot said:

    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    John Woodcock didn't resign the Labour whip. He had it removed from him following allegations of sexual harassment. Yet he calls Jeremy Corbyn, who has always retained the Labour whip, a disgrace to the party?
    Was anything proven in the end?
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    RobDRobD Posts: 58,961

    Byronic said:

    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.

    We are seeing the consequence of so many Labour MPs walking away from the party due to Corbyn. They are now free to criticise him in a way that a Labour MP standing for re-election is not.

    On the other hand, the 2017 surge didn't really gather momentum until after the manifestos were published, and that is still in our future.
    No. In 2017, their position steadily improved from the moment the election was called. See the plot here — https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2017_United_Kingdom_general_election
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    welshowlwelshowl Posts: 4,460
    Pierrot said:

    HYUFD said:

    As a detached Tory remainer and prime target voter I'd guess for Buckingham (we got our Swinson for PM card in the post today), I'm rather concerned to see Lib Dems now supporting an independent Wales?

    This is an anti Brexit alliance only, the LDs are still pro Union and aiming for gains from the SNP in Scotland but Plaid are much weaker than the SNP
    Why should a Plaid voter support the LD Unionists in Cardiff Central rather than vote Labour or abstain? Is the main attraction supposed to be that the LDs are promising to revoke Brexit without a referendum, something they obviously won't be in a position to do, their real aim being their age-old one of holding the balance of power in a hung parliament? Why not just vote Labour, hope for a Labour majority in the Commons - a far more realistic prospect than an LD majority - and look forward to voting Remain in the subsequent referendum? Plaid voters who are annoyed at Plaid pulling out may not flock to vote LD on Plaid leadership instructions.

    But what they do is a bit of an academic question given that there were fewer than 1000 Plaid voters in Cardiff Central in 2017 and Labour won a 17000 majority. They could all vote Tory for all the difference it will make to Labour.
    This is my constituency. Totally agree.

    That said it's a no brainer for PC to give it up in exchange for say Llanelli.
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    MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 50,095
    woody662 said:

    Pierrot said:

    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    John Woodcock didn't resign the Labour whip. He had it removed from him following allegations of sexual harassment. Yet he calls Jeremy Corbyn, who has always retained the Labour whip, a disgrace to the party?
    Was anything proven in the end?
    Is it ever with Labour?
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    Richard_NabaviRichard_Nabavi Posts: 30,820
    edited November 2019
    I'm a bit surprised that the betting markets indicate that the Conservatives are unlikely to lose Watford. From what I gather, departing Tory/ex-Tory/Tory MP Richard Harrington doesn't think that. The local party is in a mess - Harrington, who is a strong Remainer, fell out with the local party even well before he lost the whip, because it had become infiltrated by ex-Kippers. He was easily able to raise donations himself, and decided to decamp from the constituency party office and set up his own rival office. A substantial part of the Conservative vote in this seat will have been for his brand of Conservatism, not for the ERGish/BXP style.

    Meanwhile, both Labour (who were a fairly close second last time) and the LibDems (who have been strong here in the past and who are very strong in local elections) will fancy their chances here. Clearly they could knock each other out, allowing the Tories to win again, but this is far from certain. Note that Jo Swinson swung her battlebus through here yesterday; the LibDems will be trying hard, and I think have a much better chance than would appear from the raw 2017 figures. The Greens aren't a big presence here but their standing aside for the LibDems will help if it's close.
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    El_CapitanoEl_Capitano Posts: 3,870

    If the Lib Dems were serious about stopping Brexit they would be standing aside in every seat where they are not in the top two to give Labour the best chance of holding / gaining seats against the Bozo Tories.

    They'd be standing aside for a party that neither has a policy of stopping Brexit, nor has any intention of reciprocating. They'd be killing themselves in all contests against the Tories where they'd be portrayed as Corbyn's helpers (further setting back their chances of stopping Brexit). They'd annihilate their chances of getting reasonable media coverage due to standing too few candidates, reducing their scope for gains/holds And, as Mike has said, the 2017 result is often an appalling guide, as constituency polls for example have demonstrated.

    Apart from that, good idea.
    I think it would be plausible to find a middle ground. Remain alliance voluntarily stand down in 20 Labour seats where the MP is standing again and demonstrated clear will for remain outside of the Labour whips. Shows a gesture to Labour remainers, whilst keeping well away from the Labour leadership.
    Fool me once...

    "Despite the Greens standing down in 31 seats in 2017 to give Labour a free run, that was not reciprocated and Labour will not be standing aside in any seats at this election."

    https://greenworld.org.uk/article/greens-come-arrangement-uniting-remain-vote

    Labour thinks it has a divine right to the centre-left vote. I hope this election is a wake-up call to them.
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    woody662 said:

    Pierrot said:

    AndyJS said:

    This may be the photo of the campaign so far:

    https://twitter.com/JasonGroves1/status/1192406215906779137

    John Woodcock didn't resign the Labour whip. He had it removed from him following allegations of sexual harassment. Yet he calls Jeremy Corbyn, who has always retained the Labour whip, a disgrace to the party?
    Was anything proven in the end?
    I thought he resigned because there wasn't a proper investigation, but since he had resigned there could not be an investigation, and so there's no conclusion made.
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    PierrotPierrot Posts: 112
    HYUFD said:

    Byronic said:

    This feels like the day when the Corbyn surge of 2017 failed to rematerialise. The narrative is so different.

    Yes, this GE Corbyn may finally get the sub Foot 1983 trouncing he should have got in 2017 if it was not for May's dementia tax gaffe and Remainers tactically voting Labour. Labour will be down to its socialist core
    If all Tory strategists agree with that analysis it will be the Tory party that gets booted to kingdom come in this election, and once the manifestos are out and the TV debates start happening the move to Labour in the polls will be as sharp and sustained as it was last time. Labour didn't win a seat such as Canterbury because of dementia tax and tactically donated "Remainer" votes.
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