Dispatches from the North: A Full and Proper Coalition Government

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This morning the sun rose on a new government in Westminster, after 13 years of a Labour government Britain is now under a new era with Prime Minister David Cameron leading a Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition government the likes of which haven’t been seen here since 1945.

I should probably briefly explain my position when it comes to politics, as any commentary on politics is bound to be colored with bias. Simply put I have no party affiliations whatsoever. In the US I’ve voted both blue and red (sometimes both on the same ballot) and whenever I take one of those online “Which political party are you?” surveys I always end up smack dab in the middle in the unrecognized Centrist party (although I would never join that party, its just not my thing). I don’t see politics as black and white, and really see the philosophies of every major political party as equally effective under the right conditions. My decision making process usually has more to do with the direction of the parties than actual politics. I think both the left and right approach to solving current problems have the chance of helping if they get it right so I make up my mind based on who I think has a better chance of doing it with the candidates they put forward.

The North of England is a Labour stronghold, although this past election after so many jobs have been lost in the North East most constituencies showed a large chunk of votes go to the Conservative party even if Labour retained most of their seats. Historically Labour candidates in the North East are shoe-ins, but this time around the numbers were much closer. Now that the chips have fallen, many people in the North East are pretty pessimistic about the future and I find this attitude very disappointing.

I respect the fears of many Northerners that a Conservative government could mean public sector job losses and I definitely don’t blame Northerners for distrusting Conservatives after what a mess Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government made of the North. Still, I believe the recent Labour government has done enough to earn the distrust of the country and the people of North should really look beyond their party loyalties and recognize why so many people have lost faith in Labour to get the job done. The thing about party politics that bothers me the most is the extremist “I’m right, you’re wrong” philosophy and for people to believe nobody but Labour could get this country out of a recession seems very close minded, especially considering that the banking crisis and recession and record job losses in the North happened on Labour’s watch. From my position I think change is a good thing, and having a fresh set of eyes on the problem could be just what this country needs.

I did find the bargaining of the last few days very undemocratic. I think it is a bit messed up that the politicians themselves were responsible for working out what the new government would be. That being said, since I am fundamentally against the idea of a single ruling party I find the formation of a coalition government to be a positive thing. I don’t like the idea of one party functioning on its own independent of scrutiny from people with differing viewpoints so this Tory/LibDem mix will hopefully mean a government with a system of checks and balances and a bit of diversity.

Many Brits are worried that a hung parliament won’t be able to get anything done, but this would be a disaster for both the Tories and Liberal Democrats so they have every reason to make it work. They got a bit of a lucky break this General Election and for them to waste that opportunity by not getting anything done would be political suicide. If there is anything that motivates politicians it is their own legacy and success and at a time when there is simply so much to be done, both sides have a lot to prove and huge opportunities to establish the validity of their parties in modern-day Britain. I don’t see the point in ill-wishing this new government since this country has very little else to lose and everything to gain.