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Month: August 2012

Will Westminster stage the Independence referendum before Alex does?

Will Westminster stage the Independence referendum before Alex does?

The Sunday Times are running a story that, if Alex Salmond doesn’t agree to a single question referendum, then Westminster will organise the referendum for next year, and not devolve the necessary section 30 order allowing Holyrood to organise a legal referendum. SNP plans to hold a referendum plans without the necessary order, would leave the result open to years of legal challenges, something that SNP strategists acknowledge as very problematic, that needs to be avoided. The Conservative, Labour and Liberal…

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New Survation poll out

New Survation poll out

Conservatives 30 (+1) Labour 37 (nc) UKIP 12 (+1) Lib Dems 10 (-3) The changes are from the last Survation poll in June. They polled on behalf of the Mail on Sunday, they asked about various cabinet ministers, and should they be kept or fired. 44% want Ken Clarke to remain, whilst 28% want him fired. Support for Mr Clarke keeping his place is highest among Liberal Democrat voters, with only 11 per cent of them believing he should leave the…

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David Herdson asks: Will HS2 ever get built?

David Herdson asks: Will HS2 ever get built?

Wouldn’t the money be better spent elsewhere? The debate that’s recently taken place over the awarding of the next West Coast mainline franchise to FirstGroup refocuses the spotlight on the proposed HS2 line, which if built would be a very serious competitor to it.  That the franchise runs until 2026 – the date proposed for the opening of the first stage of HS2 – is presumably not coincidental. Will it be built though?  There’s a lot of opposition along the…

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How will the Scottish independence referendum affect the next general election

How will the Scottish independence referendum affect the next general election

James Kelly looks at the various scenarios. One thing is for sure – Scotland will be returning MPs to Westminster at the next general election, whenever it is held.  On the SNP’s proposed timetable, a Yes vote in the 2014 referendum would not result in an independent Scottish state coming into being until 2016. It is inconceivable that Scotland could remain part of the United Kingdom, even for a few months, without parliamentary representation.  Perhaps a provisional arrangement might be…

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Night hawks is open

Night hawks is open

Home of the web’s best political conversation If you’re a regular, and you Just Can’t Get Enough of PB, then relax and converse into the night on the day’s events. If you’ve always been a lurker, why not join in tonight? Over in America, Mitt Romney’s campaign became Grubby and Ugly today, or Mitt has a sense of humour, depending on your point of view. See the video here. What will this do to his campaign, and the wider general…

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Continuation thread

Continuation thread

And an article worth reading Over at Conhome, there’s an article by Mark Gettleson, who is is an elections and polling analyst, focusing on British and American politics. He writes for PoliticsHome.com and ‘The Knowledge’ in The House magazine. He is also a Liberal Democrat councillor. He looks at whether A Liberal Democrat meltdown could kill Tory chances at the next election     TSE   Mike Smithson is currently on holiday                

Henry G Manson asks: Can MPs and money mix?

Henry G Manson asks: Can MPs and money mix?

  This week a new website called www.searchthemoney.com has gone online to show what different Conservative MPs are earning or are receiving in donations. The unions behind this clearly see attack as the best form of defence and hope to highlight the link between the finance sector, big business and the Conservative Party. As their adverts on these pages show Michael Gove has already raked in £462,223 above his ample salary. It’s actually a very handy site but I think they should add…

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