Colonel Blimps, Skinheads and Randroids
 |
| Click to enlarge |
Firstly, I'd like to apologise to Llais Gwynedd for including them with such....illustrious....company. In short, Llais Gwynedd are the only right-leaning party who have anything approaching achieveable aims in their manifesto - even if said manifesto originates from 2008. Keeping local schools open is laudable, as are aims to protect the Welsh language and support renewable energy. That's standard fare, and not dissimilar to what the main parties have pledged. What Llais Gwynedd need is a health dose of realism. Tiny, isolated villages can no longer support the level of services we would all like to see. It makes sense to centralise (within reason), as does focusing major economic development around the Bangor area. It's unfortunate but a hard reality. Quality over quantity.
UKIP no longer oppose the Assembly, which will no doubt disappoint a chunk of their support in Wales. Closing the school funding gap with England is something we've heard from the Lib Dems, likewise elected local officials for police, health boards and education boards is Tory policy. I don't think it would actually make any difference to those services. Replacing AMs with MPs would need a new Act of Parliament, so is unachievable, as is resignation from the EU. This is a Welsh Assembly election guys.
The BNP oppose foreign recruitment to the NHS. I'm counting it as ambitious, but of course would likely lead to the complete collapse of the Welsh NHS. All 5 consultant cardiac surgeons in south west Wales are Asian or of Asian decent. Smart move. ID Cards have nothing to do with the Assembly. They don't seem to have any sort of positive motive towards the Welsh language, making somewhat snide comments about it, hinting at "wasted resources" in maintaining it. Their only "sensible" headline policy, is to oppose green belt building, and however good that sounds, it's not grounded in economic sense. Don't take that as any sort of encouragement, I find the BNP repugnant.
The Christian Party manifesto is obviously from the Gospel of Ron Paul, and is certainly different from the happy-clappy Anglican church we all know and ignore. Privatising hospitals is radical, but would likely lead to rioting in Wales. A new north-south road would be unaffordable, and education vouchers are school selection via the back door. In addition to these, all laws on equality and relating to abortion and stem cells are reserved matters. "And the Lord sayeth that it be a Welsh Assembly election...."
The English Democrats aim to waste a deposit once again. I'm sure if they wanted a Monmouthshire referendum, they probably could do it. They would "lose" badly of course. Statistically, in terms of economic inactivity and GVA per capita, losing the old county of Monmouthshire would be a good thing for Wales. Whether the people of Ebbw Vale and Caerphilly see themselves as English is another matter, but I'm sure the answer is predictable. Will they ever take the hint? Developing a hydrogen based infrastructure is something I can support though. Perhaps they are not that silly after all.
Hippies, The Awkward Squad and Trust-Fund Trots
 |
| Click to enlarge |
The Greens are the only minor party with a (realistic) chance of getting an AM (if the polls are to be believed). They have some very ambitious goals, such as 50,000 "green" jobs, the phased abolition of tuition fees and free care for the elderly. You can't fault their ambition, but you can fault their ability to face the cuts head on. No matter what they promise, the money won't be there to do it. The only grounded headline policy seems to be electrification of the railways, which each of the main parties share. They're good people, and mean well, but until they can address several key points they're a wasted vote. Firstly the anomaly of an "England and Wales" Green Party, and secondly that they don't even call for the devolution of energy in their manifesto - which renders their great renewable energy goals redundant in an instant.
The Trade Union and Socialist Coalition focus mainly on local government cuts. I'm not even sure if they have any Wales-specific policies. Nonetheless, however much the cuts hurt, they are with us and there is nothing anyone can do about it. None of their policies would really do the Welsh public at large, or the public finances, any real good. Nor does the Assembly really have the ability to address it properly, it can only tinker. I personally believe that public services should remain public, and that's something I share with the TUSC. However, being awkward for the sake of it - without coming to terms with the financial black hole left to us by the City of London and Labour - isn't going to win them any friends, or any real backing.
Arthur Scargill's Socialist Labour Party have been a perennial candidate since the Assembly was founded. Again you can't fault their ambition or idealism. I'd certainly like a 4 day week and retirement at 55 - nothing the Assembly can do about it though. Reopening coal mines would be a backward step as we move towards other forms of energy. Nationalisation of key services is never likely to happen again, no matter how much sense it makes in some cases, for example the railways. Interestingly though, the SLP are the only ones who mention an independence referendum!
The Welsh Communist Party cover very similar ground to both the TUSC and the SLP, as you might expect. This is part of the reason why no hard-left candidates ever get elected - too many sects. The Communists fail to realise the Assembly has no power to tax the rich, and however great full employment sounds on paper it's unlikely to be achieved in a free market. Reorganising post-secondary education and broadcasting sounds interesting, but no real details are given.
0 comments:
Post a Comment