They have a bit of momentum down here in the Sunny South East and the party political broadcast spoke of re nationalising utilities a particular hobby horse of mine, wish they’d consider telecommunications as well.

So, it’s either them or UKIP, can’t bring myself to vote for the other three, what would you do?

I voted Green in my last council elections too. The local councillors are the only ones who actually seem to engage with people and listen to them. I don’t agree with all their policies but they are the only real alternative at the moment to the neo-liberalism/Thatcherism espoused by all the other parties.

I voted green in the last election as well, only one I saw that seemed vaguely human

I think green is the only realistic option for me too. Would usually vote liberal but they’ve proved to be a complete irrelevance. Green on the other hand have been doing pretty well in Brighton and Hove and I certainly think their policies are far more just and ethical than anyone else.

Green or UKIP seems and odd option as they seem to be polar opposites on many points

UKIP are complete climate sceptics, and seem to hate cyclists wanting us taxed and to walk around roundabout to not impede traffic, very different on defence too

[edit]I’m thinking green too, if I have a green option. bit pointless really though as I’m in a massive conservative strong hold afaik[/edit]

The Green party almost certainly will not win the seat but the more votes they receive, the more this should influence the policies of the party that does, or so the theory goes.

Just vote for the politician you would ideally like to represent you

It’s a sensible vote IMHO. If they don’t win then any votes they get shows the other candidates that they need to consider green issues to stay elected and they do win they will only get a seat or two so be a good extra voice in any debates. As above, I don’t agree with all their policies but I think voting for them sends a message.

Would usually vote liberal but they’ve proved to be a complete irrelevance.

Well it’s easy for the Greens to look relevant when they have no power.

friend of mine as a bit bored, stood for council as Green Party, and won by mistake*

*as in they didn’t really want to win, not that it was a counting mistake

If you want to see a one policy party in action look no further than Brighton …
And a right royal clusterf*** it is.
Pro travellers, pro save the planet, anti just about everything else …
Oh, and pro heorin shooting galleries

Their transport policuy is a nightmare – huge parking charges, a 20 MPH speed limit through the town, that cannot be policed as cameras can’t measure ( and cyclist break it all the time). Buses – effing hundreds of buses that clog every arterial road – and who’s price keep on rising at 15% per 6 months …
Even the Greens had to accept that the parking cahrges were out of order. they were reduced last month as people were avoiding the town.

Vote green if you wish – but the seriously lack any political depth or understanding of the real world

There you go with your crazy left-of-centre views again.

Yes Brighton is a living nightmare, that will be why people are leaving in droves and it’s becoming a ghost-town.

I’d already decided that the Green Party are the only ones who are making any sense. They seem to be saying a lot of what the Labour party should be saying if they hadn’t become a low calorie version of the Tories.

I’m definitely voting for them! Except… there are no Green candidates standing up here. Just UKIP. So the choice is Tory, Torier and Toriest. Great! 👿

mrmoofo

Sounds like many reasons I would vote green. 😀

bit pointless really though as I’m in a massive conservative strong hold afaik

No, it’s got every point. You have to vote how you really feel otherwise the system is totally broken.

Having said that, I would vote Plaid here rather than Green because they are similarly leftie but are stronger. If I weren’t in Wales I’d vote Green I’m sure.

I’ve not found Brighton & Hove to be any worse under the Greens than any of the previous incumbents, tbh, they all seem to make apparently daft policy decisions just to be seen to be doing something different to whoever they replaced – having seen all the problems with the existing policy but none of the problems with what they propose to replace it with.

Now if just one of them would make a sensible suggestion for replacing that cockroach infested hole that is the King Alfred so I didn’t have to take my kids to Burgess Hill or Crawley to go swimming they might be onto a winner.

There you go with your crazy left-of-centre views again.

Yes Brighton is a living nightmare, that will be why people are leaving in droves and it’s becoming a ghost-town.

So how are those views right of cente, Mr AP?

Funny that people are leaving Brighton in droves, can you quote sources? – as the opposite seems to be the case (depite what Ron Liddle said). House price crash – what house price crash …?
It is very difficult to rent in brighton ( and the prices are high) becaus eof supply and demand …

Well they are attacking plans to expand our local airport which would bring jobs to those losing theirs as the Nuclear Power station closes. That’s the trouble with these fringe organisations they always attract the ‘nutter’ element, I also vehemently agree with UKIP on the getting us out of Europe, but can’t stand the damn racist element they also attract.
I also used to vote liberal, well SDP actually, but never again, I can’t abide Clegg nor a lot of career politicians they seem to attract.
Not that much sensible choice really is there, they are on a reduce the wages of snr council management ticket which I also agree with, I can’t stand that the front line services are being cut yet upper managerial wages are way above private sector levels for equivalent jobs.

Except… there are no Green candidates standing up here

Do your bit binners – join up and stand for election.

Buses – effing hudreds of buses that clog every arterial road

You’ve lost me there. 50+ seats on a bus. How would you move that many people without clogging up the roads ?

Isn’t Brighton now populated entirely by Nathan Barleys, who’ve migrated from Hoxton? And julie burchill

Do your bit binners – join up and stand for election.

That’s the trouble with these fringe organisations they always attract the ‘nutter’ element

Hmmmmmmmmmmm….. It sounds like it could be my perfect next move. VOTE FOR ME!!!! 😀

Yes Brighton is a living nightmare, that will be why people are leaving in droves and it’s becoming a ghost-town.

I suspect that you need your irony detector functionign when reading this sentence.

Getting out of Europe is a daft idea, IMHO … europe has to have the whole relationship reviewed, mind. A federal europe will not work and unfortunately the euro probably cannot work without political union.

If we get out of Europe, who do you think is going to buy our “stuff”?

UKIP – boy, that is tough choice. Another one policy party, with closet rascists and holocaust deniers in it’s ranks. All about making Britian as it was with the Empire and in the ’60s. Sounds like BNP lite to me ….

If we get out of Europe, who do you think is going to buy our “stuff”?

At a guess, Europe. Business is business. Norway and Switzerland seem to get by.

Don’t vote. It only encourages them.

There you go with your crazy left-of-centre views again.

So how are those views right of cente, Mr AP?

😕

@Molgrips agreed, I too think every should vote for who they want and vote tacticly.

Too often I’ve seen leaflets with “vote for us they’re a wasted vote”

The political landscape might be different if everybody who wanted to vote did and voted for who they really wanted to vote for.

not that there’s any one party which I think is a perfect fit for most people

Isn’t Brighton now populated entirely by Nathan Barleys, who’ve migrated from Hoxton? And julie burchill

I thought she was in Bristol somewhere! And yes, all those Nathans, make it easy to remember names …

You’ve lost me there. 50+ seats on a bus. How would you move that many people without clogging up the roads ?

By talented driving skills , I think, plus three buses going to the same place that arrive at once ( anyne for a No 7 to the Marina). And the the way they stack themse;ves at bustops.

TBH, not really into bus spotting / transport dynamics, so please feel free to come and visit

At a guess, Europe. Business is business. Norway and Switzerland seem to get by.

Switerland are in a very different position – financially(they did well at the end of ’45) and geographically. They are a commercial partner who cannot be ignored – and have a very generous tax system.
How long have you got – lived there for years. But even the swiss no longer shop there because of euro prices being so attractive. the high CHF is only tenable for a certain period of time.

Norway – don’t know much about it, other than it is very expensive / high tax and few people. maybe that is all related

So, in theory, all we’d need to do to become a successful independent state within Europe is find an ally who’s about to murder a large, rich ethnic group by the million, and offer to provide them with financial services?

Actually…. most British banks would have absolutely no issue with that

So, in theory, all we’d need to do to become a successful independent state within Europe is find an ally who’s about to murder a large, rich ethnic group by the million, and offer to provide them with financial services?

Actually…. most British banks would have absolutely no issue with that

Good point … made well 😀

Norway – don’t know much about it, other than it is very expensive / high tax and few people. maybe that is all related

Norway have few people, and shedloads of oil being extracted by the state I think.. yes?

Don’t assume that because something works for one country it’ll work for another. Many countries have hugely different economic profiles.

The political landscape might be different if everybody who wanted to vote did and voted for who they really wanted to vote for.

http://www.votematch.org.uk/

You’ve lost me there. 50+ seats on a bus. How would you move that many people without clogging up the roads ?

+1…

I’ve moved to Brighton over a year ago, and its made my mind up that i’m voting Green.

fwiw, its got the highest use of public transport per head outside London, and they are actually putting in some decent bicycle lanes too.

They’re quite right to discourage car use given its an old densely populated city imo. Its not Milton Keynes.

You’re not forced to use the busses, and if you need to drive the roads will be quieter than if they weren’t there.

The Argus, like many local papers, seems very similar to the Daily Mail in its criticism of almost everything seen as “left” or “liberal” though.

HH – ironically, i moved to BTN, from MK, via Zurich.

In Brighton, I never use a car. In fact, we will probably get rid of it, even though I have a valued posession in Brighton, car parking and a garage!

I don’t doubt buses work but the infrastuture in Brighton seems to have a problem with the amount that descend on the North St / East Street area. Look up to the clocktower and it can be red as far as the eye can see – and with little movement.
Brighton streets are not wide enough to have bus lanes everywhere, so you change one traffic snarl up for another one. It also doesn’t help that a number of skateborders see every down hill stretch as being fair game – even if its a main road.

Ah, the Argus. A 14 years olds school paper. Rubbish articles, badly written. And it would make the DM blush ( though, I wouldn’t know 8)

Don’t assume that because something works for one country it’ll work for another. Many countries have hugely different economic profiles.

Indeed not. The rest of Europe would probably be even keener to keep trading with us than they are with Norway and Switzerland. The argument is after all about trade relations with Europe and I’m really not sure of the relevance of Switzerland having banks and Norway having oil to whether the EU wants to trade with them.

Norway have few people, and shedloads of oil being extracted by the state I think.. yes?

Not really no. We had way more oil and gas than Norway did but they built up a sovereign wealth fund whereas we pissed it away in the 80s. The states stakeholding in oil companies isn’t really relevant either. The Tax the UK government gets on PRT liable fields in the UK is currently 81% and for non PRT liable ones is 62% so the UK gets the lions share of wealth even though it doesn’t operate the fields. N.B the UK government still owns the oil in the ground.

mrmoofo – Member
Getting out of Europe is a daft idea, IMHO … europe has to have the whole relationship reviewed, mind. A federal europe will not work and unfortunately the euro probably cannot work without political union.

If we get out of Europe, who do you think is going to buy our “stuff”?

UKIP – boy, that is tough choice. Another one policy party, with closet rascists and holocaust deniers in it’s ranks. All about making Britian as it was with the Empire and in the ’60s. Sounds like BNP lite to me ….

Agreed that Europe needs the relationship reviewed.

Don’t agree that we need to stay in for that to happen, nor that it would be a problem for export sales if we left, it would just be a question of negotiating trade agreements, better in a way than the current illusion that there are no trade barriers between us, and if you don’t believe they still exist just try setting up an ebay method of selling to Germany.

As to UKIP and closet every kind of human failing, do you mean to suggest that other parties don’t have them in equal measure? I seem to remember one being lead by a war criminal, don’t fall for that sort of tory/labour propaganda.

As to UKIP and closet every kind of human failing

Their xenophobia is barely closeted TBH.

I suspect that you need your irony detector functionign when reading this sentence.

😉

As to UKIP and closet every kind of human failing, do you mean to suggest that other parties don’t have them in equal measure? I seem to remember one being lead by a war criminal, don’t fall for that sort of tory/labour propaganda.

Quite right, instead read the UKIP manifesto. Although the end effect may not be too dissimilar.

read the UKIP manifesto

well the top two issues appear to be
Fighting immigration and beating wind farms

Nearly a quarter of all European
nationals living in the UK are not
working…551,000 out of 2.3 million
are economically inactive and 146,000
have never worked in this country. The
figure of those who
have never worked has risen by 30%
since 2008”

I assume they are trying to trick us into thinking the phrase economically inactive means unemployed when in reality my 7 year old and retired mother are economically inactive. What % of UK nationals work in Spain or cyprus or France etc. He then quotes the Daily mail .I stopped reading at this point and had made Page 2