| Topic: | Smoke filled rooms and pre-election deals | Forum Home |
| Posted by: | Mike Hardacre | |
| Date/Time: | 10/04/06 08:52:00 |
| Looking through the runners and riders for the local elections I was trying to work out what the various party's strategies were. The article on the front page seems to suggest Labour is safe but I can't see how such a slim majority in terms of seats, combined with an unpopular Labour government nationally how this can be right. It's pretty clear that the Lib Dems and the Conservatives have recognised that they need to co-operate to get Labour out and they are sending a clear message to voters who want a change of Council who to vote for. In most seats the Liberal Democrats are fielding one candidate where the Tories have three and vice versa. I suppose some hardcore members will say this deprives them of the chance to support the party of their choice but most will recommend that this is the pragmatic way to go about things. The ICG seem to have opted out or been excluded from this arrangement as I can't figure out what their strategy is. Why haven't they contested Brentford? They may have made themselves unpopular on this board but as they are so strong in Isleworth it would have seemed natural for them to target here. Instead they seem to be picking Conservative wards. I'm predicting a hung Council. This would be a good outcome as experience elsewhere suggests that 'no overall control' often means better governance than single party control. After decades of Labour misrule in Hounslow this would be great news for residents. |