Wednesday 22 December 2010

Vince Cable - Empire strikes back

I understand that the Torygraph don't like us Lib Dems. Thats ok, they can join the back of the increasing queue. But why are they going after the Lib Dems in order to destroy the coalition. Do they really want a minority Tory government with no power or another general election that could result in a Labour win or even worse for them a Labour/Liberal Democrat coalition.
 
It's also interesting that papers are increasingly using entrapment and the Telegraph claimed to of published the full details but held the Murdoch story for their own gain as they still wanted Cable to rule on Murdoch after the Ofcom report. The Telegraphs chief executive wrote to Vince Cable along with other newspaper editors and the BBC to ask Cable not to allow the takeover of BSkyB). Now that Jeremy Hunt is in charge of this decision I can see this entrapment back firing for the Telegraph.
 
Vince Cable with his eclectic wording was always going to become unstuck. He like many Lib Dems are not used to being in government and some are finding it hard to adjust. 
 
Tim Farron, Liberal Democrat party president tweeted 'congratulations to the Telegraph who've uncovered the shocking truth that Lib Dem ministers have... err...got minds of their own. good work! ' And that's just how I judge this story. Liberal Burblings have an excellent blog on this More Libdem ministers open up to undercover surgery constituents and Carons Musings on Tim Farron in Tim Farron ill not be checking birth
 
It's also no secret that many Liberal Democrats don't like the Murdoch empire and that empire does not like us. It's not a secret that the coalition is not producing perfect Liberal Democrat policy. I expect there are plenty of Tories that would also be unhappy with some Liberal Democrat policies installed in the coalition agreement.
 
All politicians who have to make judgements should of course consider the evidence that Ofcom will provide. But MP's cannot be expected to keep their politics out of these decisions. That is why they are elected. In reality if Cable had kept quite I expect he would of looked at the findings and then also applied his own  political views to the judgement. If we expect politicians to make independent judgements then this power should be moved away from the policies and into the had of the regulator. but again that's not why we vote for politicians, we vote for them to have power to make decisions.
 
Liberal Democrats like to say what they think, that's what we have been used to in opposition. If government means that we can no longer be honest with our constituents then maybe government is not for us. Although I would prefer everyone else to change so that members of other parties can say what they believe (after all we vote for what MP's stand for and believe in) surely this is allowed to effect policy. I would also like the papers to understand that its ok for coalition partners to not agree on everything as this is good for democracy to represent more views.
 
As I keep on blogging. Soon your MP won't hold surgeries and soon they won't be able to provide any opinion or information to any interviewer or constituent, because that is where we are heading.

2 comments:

  1. "I've declared war on Rupert Murdoch"

    what a sad, sad, silly little twat

    is there anything worse or more truly pathetic than someone going against all they professed to believe in for a little bit of power?

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  2. Well what ever you think of Cable. He not only lost the chance to use his power. He did make himself look a bit silly with his colourful language

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