The Contented Politician
It has been reported in some sections of the media that Gina Ford is writing a political blog. This is not the case. The Contented Baby team, with the help of some of our website members, will be putting together regular round-ups of the main events and issues that are likely to interest members in the run-up to the general election. Gina, meanwhile, is concentrating on all things Contented Baby-related. To read her latest news, please click here. Weekly Round-up (9) After months of build-up, the starting guns are about to be fired. It is anticipated that sometime this week - probably Tuesday - the Prime Minister will visit the Queen to tell her he is calling the general election. He'll announce it to the nation a few moments later, and the campaign will officially be underway. The televised leaders' debates are expected to be the big highlight, with the first to be shown on ITV on the subject of domestic affairs. Let's hope it will be more interesting than the 'Chancellors' Debate' on Channel 4 last week. Vince Cable, the LibDem Treasury Spokesman, was widely seen as the best performer in what we thought was a rather dull show. Labour had been hoping that Shadow Chancellor George Osborne, who has a poor image among many voters, would slip up; but he gave an assured performance, highlighting the Conservatives' plans to cut the national deficit. Meanwhile Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, robustly defended his record on the economy - leaving no clear winner. Unfortunately for Mr Darling, he had a much more serious challenge to deal with last week: A backlash over one of his tax rises from high-profile business leaders. More than 20 big guns, including former Labour supporters, signed a letter attacking the Chancellor's plans to raise National Insurance (NI) by one per cent from April 2011. Bosses of companies (including Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury and Diageo) spoke out, claiming the tax hike would put jobs at risk and endanger the economic recovery. The businessmen, who were later backed by several powerful business organisations, such as the British Chambers of Commerce, support Tory plans to scrap the NI rise for those earning less than £45,400 a year. The Tories will also reduce planned rises in the amount of NI employers are expected to pay. It could prove an important turning point in the election campaign. By the end of the week, Labour was beginning to look isolated on this issue, with Sir Alan Sugar the only big name prepared to speak out in support of Mr Darling's plans. Lord Sugar agrees with Mr Darling that the tax rises are a necessary evil in these tough times. The Conservatives say the government is now "at war with British business", while Labour insists the Tories are promising things they can't afford. For the moment, the experts seem to agree with the Tories and not Gordon Brown - a big boost for Mr Cameron as the election campaign begins. The other big row of the week was over immigration. It's an issue many voters think is hugely important, but none of the main parties are keen to talk about it, fearing it is too sensitive and could expose them to accusations of racism. The Prime Minister tried to reassure voters on the subject, promising to introduce some new restrictions on non-EU workers, and rattling off some statistics that showed the number of foreigners coming to the UK these days is falling. Unfortunately, he messed up the figures, and was publicly reprimanded by the boss of the UK Statistics Authority for potentially misleading people. David Cameron has been out and about, talking about his plans for creating a stronger society by getting more people involved in their communities. He announced that a Conservative government would train a 5000-strong "neighbourhood army" to set up community groups. He hopes that by making communities closer-knit, his party will mend what they call "Broken Britain". With just four weeks to go until the big day, the Tories are now surging ahead of Labour in the polls. Latest YouGov polls suggest the Tories are ten points ahead - enough for a comfortable majority. With big announcements from Mr Cameron expected this week on tax breaks for married couples and cancer care, the party is building momentum. Nick Clegg spent part of his week in Scotland on a tour of target seats. During the trip, he declared that the Conservatives are, "as irrelevant north of the border as the SNP are in London". Ironically, Mr Clegg and his party are often called "irrelevant" themselves by the two main parties, and in the next four weeks, Mr Clegg will have his work cut out to ensure his voice is heard. There was a crumb of comfort for him though when a famous American politician offered his endorsement. Howard Dean, a former US presidential candidate, praised the LibDem leader as "young" and "dynamic", and said he thinks Mr Clegg "could win". Finally, Labour received a surprise boost as a result of a classic April Fool's joke by the Guardian newspaper. They ran a spoof article claiming that Labour was planning to play up the Prime Minister's reputation for being a tough boss, with posters depicting him as a "hard man" who isn't afraid of a fight. The spoof posters, emphasising an alpha-male personality and including one depicting the Prime Minister as 'The Godfather', became a huge internet hit. Now there are even demands for t-shirts with some of the slogans. It may not sit easily with street crime policy - but perhaps voters like the idea of a Prime Minister who's so passionate about his job, he's prepared to get physical? The ContentedBaby Team
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