uk politics kind of suck right now!

[such_heights]

So, what's the European equivalent of emigrating to Canada - Scotland? The Netherlands? Because if the local election results coming in are indicative of the shape of things to come, then, well.

In Doncaster, about 20 miles from me, the new mayor vows to cut gay pride funds.

Peter Davies, of the English Democrats, said: "My policy on gays and lesbians is very simple. I don't think councils should be spending money on them parading through town advertising their sexuality." (guess what I'll be doing come August 16th)

Mr Davies has also stated he intends to cut funding for translation services for non-English speakers in the borough. The English Democrats say they want "English freedoms and values, not multiculturalism".

[source]

Also, the BNP claimed its first county council seat in Burnley, the next town over from my father's family. They found another in my home county of Hertfordshire. There is no escape! /o\

With the European Parliament election results coming out tomorrow, it's also relevant that David Cameron (let's be honest, our new PM in all probability), has spoken about his desire to move away from the centre-right EU grouping, the EPP-ED, to form a new right-wing Eurosceptic group. He'll need 25 members from 6 countries to qualify as a grouping. Huh. A collection of disenfranchised right-wing political parties forming a new separatist coalition, I see no way whatsoever that could go wrong. source, source, and more source.

*moves to the moon*

Comments

[woldy]

Fuck. It starts already, eh? Even aside from the new EU grouping, the Conservatives have had racist and homophobic policies for years - you can see it in their voting records as well as their rhetoric.

I think the European equivalent of moving to Canada might be Scotland (yay free care for the elderly! yay no tuition fees!), or at least that was my plan before I, er, moved to Canada (which is nowhere near as progressive as a lot of people seem to think).

[woldy]

Also - Hertfordshire is where I grew up, & I'm shocked and saddened to hear about the BNP seat.

[such_heights]

Oh, yes, the Tories haven't been in my good books, well, ever, but with each new incarnation of them I always hope that they're ditching their more objectionable policies. That may have been misplaced.

Sorry to hear Canada's not turning out as advertised in that respect! Seems like very few places actually do, though.

Also, hurray fellow Herts person! I don't see those around very much. What part are you from, if you don't mind my asking?

[woldy]

I'm old enough to have gone through school during the Section 28 and I remember their negative comments about single parents and racist stuff about the test of nationalism being which cricket team you support. And I've actually looked at the voting record for my MP (James Clappison) and so I know he's voted against LGB equality measures. It's going to take a damn sight more than David Cameron smiling to convince me that the Tories have changed, especially while they keep calling for a tough on crime agenda that means criminalizing the poor and (especially given the nature of the Met) disproportionately people of colour.

Canada's okay, I guess, but ultimately it's a white settler state with immigration policies that only admit the rich or highly educated (thereby brain draining professional people from poorer nations). Then again we have a minority Conservative government of massive suck run by oil people at the moment, so I may be unusually bitter!

[magic-at-mungos.livejournal.com]

Yes, welcome to the land where I have Peter Lilley as my MP. such_heights has Anne Main as hers and it all just fails :(

[woldy]

*sigh* I can haz new electoral syztem nao plz?

Of course, it would also be nice if any other parties actually ran in those seats - I would've voted Green in the last national election if they'd bothered to put up a candidate.

[magic-at-mungos.livejournal.com]

I think the Greens ran for the Hitchen and Harpenden seat but it's such a Tory safe seat, it's not even funny. The Lib Dem candidate looked about 15 at the last election.