Mainstream Politics and Hunting
So you think it’s all over? It soon will be...
by Editor Midge Todhunter
"…the Tories need a bigger swing than ever before; bigger than when Mrs Thatcher swept to power in 1979 in a landslide victory. That will take some doing, and while I am optimistic that David Cameron will be our next PM, it won’t be as easy for him to bring about a free vote..."
Harry Stephenson: in his TMV column November 2009
Prime Minister Gordon Brown is said by the political pundits to have had a good fortnight. He gained much needed kudos by quickly getting to the floods disaster area of Cumbria to talk first hand with the flood victims, and he pledged an initial £1,000,000 to the immediate needs of the disaster. And the country respected him for that. In times when small groups of Britain are in great need - like Mrs Thatcher and the Falkland Isles - a British PM can gain much in a short space of time, and Brown has gained ground in the polls for this and other reasons.
Tories leader David Cameron MP is said to have had a bad fortnight. He too made it to Cumbria - albeit a few days after the PM - but somehow his PR machine failed to travel ahead of him to provide the right package on the ground, which, after all, was a terrible disaster story being played out on the World’s news stage. He came, he looked, but… it all petered out. Cameron’s PR team is failing him in a game where communications and public perception are everything.
Cameron has been ‘burdened’ by a clear lead in the opinion polls for far too long. The perception that the Tories will win the next General Election has rumbled on interminably since Brown came to power. Voters have not felt the need to get their heads around Cameron’s policies, nor gauge the weight of his Shadow Cabinet. This lackadaisical interim may yet prove be the Tories’ downfall.
The brilliant political sketch writer Matthew Parris said last week that Cameron has always insisted victory wasn’t in the bag, and we’ve been inclined to laugh. We still suspect victory, but the laughing has stopped. There’s now a nervy sense that it could all, still, just, go wrong.
…Labour now say there may still be much to play for...
Labour MPs are now beginning to think a hung Parliament might now be within their grasp. And when they come back after the Christmas break - instead of sitting there and waiting for the end, those with low majorities may now think there’s much to play for.
A hung Parliament would of course almost certainly put paid to a Free Vote in Parliament for Repeal of the Hunting Act. In a hung Parliament, no Party has control.
...Alistair Campbell, PR guru to Tony Blair, is back...
But the real battle cries in the run up to the next election, which will begin post the Christmas break, are yet to come. For Alistair Campbell, PR guru to Tony Blair during Labour’s success years is said to be making regular visits to Downing Street.
Gordon Brown’s weekly spat with Cameron at Prime Minister’s Question time (PMQ) in the House of Commons is said to have sharpened-up considerably over the last two sessions, due to Gordon Brown now reinvented as a class warrior.
Brown now depicts the Tories as: ‘toffs serving the interests of toffs’; ‘the rich and privileged, governing the rich and privileged’. He has also begun to highlight such revelations that Cameron’s fellow Eton educated Zac Goldsmith MP has been ‘outed’ as having much of his considerable wealth stashed away in foreign banks.
Brown told Cameron at PMQ: "The issue for the country is this: is it public services for the many, or inheritance tax cuts for the few. With you and Mr Goldsmith, your inheritance tax policy seems to have been dreamed up on the playing fields of Eton."
Labour took a mighty dive in the polls when Brown became their leader. His delivery is clumsy and he lacks charisma, but he’s clearly a very highly intelligent man who is true to his beliefs and background, and few doubt his sincerity.
With Campbell now at work on Brown’s public persona, the next few months to a May 2010 General Election will be - to say the least - crucial to the fortunes of hunting’. Campbell will shift the election goal posts around to suit him. Campbell may make much of the hunting vote as class warfare, which it now is. Hunting’s PR stinks. But that is down to hunting’s own failings, and its appalling PR track record over the past 50 years or more.
The next election is such an absolute decisive juncture for the future of hunting; surely we need much more impulse than we currently have?
Your views please? info@themastersvoice.co.uk
For a repeal of the Hunting Act 04: two basics must happen:
- One: only the Tories have pledged to set Parliament time for another Free Vote on the future of hunting - so it is imperative that the Tories win the next General Election, or we are dead in the water.
- Two: the Tories need a massive landslide victory to have enough of a majority to bring forward a Free Vote on the future of hunting. A limp majority, or worse - a hung Parliament simply will not do.
Please get involved and help make a difference and follow the guidance of
Vote-ok.co.uk
Get Involved
from Vote-OK.co.uk
There are many ways to get involved, no matter how much or how little time you have to spare and there is something for everyone to do - no matter your age or capabilities.
How you can help...
Prior to Election Day
- Leafleting - surprisingly satisfying, keeps you fit, and fun if well-organised with small groups (car loads) who can cover a particular area and meet up afterwards.
- Envelope stuffing - often a local campaign will require leaflets to be enveloped and individually addressed to householders, so envelopes will need to be stuffed, sorted and batched. Ideal for those less able to tramp the streets.
- Poster Sites - please identify high visibility sites where mega banners can be erected. Get teams together who are able to carry out the work.
- Door-to-door canvassing - going out with the candidate or other party big-wigs and persuading the electorate why it is time for a change.
- Telephone canvassing - an easy way to help the campaign by asking simple questions (full guidance and instructions will be given) and hopefully getting pledges from supporters to vote.
Election Day
- The first 72 Hours after the Election is called - the most important time to deliver the candidates message.
- Telling - you will be positioned outside a Polling Station (for an hour or two) and noting those who have voted, so that those who have 'pledged' but not voted can be reminded to do so.
- Telephoning - reminding those who have 'pledged' to vote, but have not done so.
- Driving - providing your car to drive anyone to the Polling Station if required.