On the day that started with my seeing Alistair Campbell, at Leeds Railway station, about to board the train I got off,the first historic live debate took place. Stage managed and controlled as it was, it did show the strengths and weaknesses of the three participants. If Nick Clegg was a Tory, the result of the election would not be in doubt. He was convincing as a person, but the Liberal Manifesto is flawed. David Cameron was not as good as everyone expected , but I think he will come back, more strongly next time. I thought he managed to avoid taking the debate down to the level Gordon Brown did at times,by not rising to the bait that Gordon offered. Gordon Brown trotted out the same old claptrap as he has over the past two years, ignoring questions about the reason why all of a sudden Labour are talking about tackling manifesto promises from 1997. He chose instead to debase the discussion by intriducing snide comments about Lord Ashcroft and clear misrepresentations od current Tory thinking, and by being obsequious towards Nick Clegg and the liberals.

I really think that Gordon is so convinced he will lose the overall majority that he WANTS people to vote liberal.

If this was a boxing match then round 1 was shaded on points by the liberals, with the Tories 2nd and Gordon trailing miserably behind.

Argument of the week was over NI contributions, where labour contradicted themselves by saying they are not adding to the burden this year on business, and are not making public sector savings, yet say they are already doing it.Confused??
The Tories generally carry out their manifesto pledges, Labour just talk about doing things. In my experience of governments over the past 40 years, since I was able to vote, the Tories get things done, Labour completely destroys the economy, whether there is world recession or not.

Roll on May 7th, when all the staged campaigning and nonsense is out of the way.

Should politicians simply talk up the economy, when the truth is that it is still suffering and has a long way to go, before we can truthfully say it is growing?  A General Election is looming large on the horizon, and the points scoring process as started. Labour, via Lord Peter Mandelson, are accusing David Cameron, and the tories of putting down the British economy, when they should be talking it up. In the past this has happened, 1979, for example. A beleagured Prime Minister , James Callagahn claimed inflation was only at 8%, as Labour grappled with the winter of discontent, like a paratrooper trying to take the air out of his parachute on landing and put it back in its pack, or like King Canute trying to order the sea to obey him. However hard he tried the reality showed up. Britain was not prepared for how bad things REALLY were ,as interest rates soared after the election to tackle the parlous state of the economy.

We all know there are very difficult days’ ahead, more difficult than any of us can remember, so I say to all politicians ADMIT the truth, don’t pussy foot about dismissing opposition comments that are the stark ECONOMIC TRUTH. Britain is in a mess, Britain, as it has been proved , was “not best placed to come out of recession quickly”.  Gordon Brown is having to eat his words more and more, he is just not to be believed on anything, as he struggles to save HIS job, and not the country.

via Spanish Repossessions Could Cripple Market.

With the annual budget forecast due, there is bound to be a second wave of unemployment, as public sector jobs are put under pressure, through the need to cut costs.

So what does it matter if we retire a year later, those currently in their 50′s anyway. If it does mean a better longer term pension, then it can only be good.

Cutting out waste is going to help, putting up taxes may have to happen, but that depends on how well the economy improves, and how new business can contribute tax on their profits.

The BBC in their carefully edited versions of events at the Tory conference, as usual managed to distort what was being said. I am sorry Gordon Brown, the media do decide elections. People do follow what they see in their papers and on the internet, as well as on their TV screens, and the point you seem to miss is that the messages , such as in the Sun newspaper, are repeated in all the various new forms of news media, which will only serve to drive home the message, “don’t vote for Gordon (Gone Bust) Brown, the self proclaimed saviour of the Global economies of the world”.

So what if David Cameron was handed a glass of bubbly, these things happen at receptions, where you are an invited guest. No-one really cares if he drinks champagne, surely. Quite frankly, I can’t stand the stuff…much rather have a nice glass of red wine, any day.

After the shables of the Labour Party Conference, and the even more confusing Liberal Democrat one, we are about to see the start of the Tory conference, which is away from the distractions of the seaside, in Manchester.

This will be crucial to the next election, mooted to be on May 6th (oh that Gordon Brown would call it sooner, so that we can get this painful period over with). I would warn the Tories not to follow Labour’s lead and court popularity with policies that will never happen, cannot be afforded and are just jumping on the latest crisis that the country has lurched into.

There is a policy which has hit the news today about giving free accommodation to pensioners after the age of 65, for an initial papyment of £8,000. Not sure on the details, but already Labour are saying it is not affordable.

There are talks of reversing the 50% tax band for higher earners, and taking it back to 40%. This would make sense, as surely the way for the economy to grow is for people to have available money to spend on products and services, which would ultimately create profitability and tax revenues from VAT and corporation tax. High tax rates , I feel , tend to stifle competition and growth.

There are difficult times ahead for any future government, and I do not believe the Labour myth that the Tories are only interested in “cuts” for cuts sake, and are only interested in reducing inheritance tax.

I hope that clarity will appear and further serve to end the Labour of lax control on spending and false growth. Labour inherited a sound economy in 1997, but have thrown billions down the drain, including selling off the gold reserves at their lowest price.

Watch this space