Friends Like These

Facebook users, note that I did not create this, although I do endorse every word of it:

Real Experience:

- Independent by name – answerable to no one but the voters;
- Independent by nature – a mind of his own;
- lived in this constituency almost all his life, never went to school anywhere else, went to university within five miles of here;
- long-standing local activist, councillor and school governor;
- worker in all three of the public, private and voluntary sectors;
- entirely State-educated, non-Oxbridge, buried his father at 13, had major emergency surgery, been unemployed, been self-employed, been on Income Support because former employer did not keep up stamps for Incapacity Benefit;
- two degrees, councillor from 21, primary school governor for two four-year terms from 21, comprehensive school governor for two four-year terms from 22;
- decades of service to offer;
- mixed-race, like one in five British children under five, but unlike any current MP;

And much, much more.

Real Principles:

- pro-life, pro-family, pro-worker, anti-war;
- an economically social democratic, morally and socially conservative British and Commonwealth patriot;
- One Nation politics, with an equal emphasis on the One and on the Nation;
- conservationist, not environmentalist;
- far too left-wing to be liberal, far too conservative to be capitalist;
- practising Catholic;
- if elected here in 2010, will light the fire for more such MPs the next time, more again the time after that, and the eventual re-emergence of a proper party that really speaks for us;

And much, much more.

Real Social Democratic Policies:

- no one’s tax-free income to fall below half national median earnings;
- abolish prescription charges, and restore free eye and dental treatment;
- make employment rights begin on day one of employment and apply regardless of the number of hours worked, as promised by John Smith;
- save council housing, and bring all council services back in house;
- renationalise the utilities and the railways;
- build a national network of public transport free at the point of use;
- remove all nuclear, radiological, chemical and biological weapons from British soil and waters;

And much, much more.

Real Conservative and Patriotic Policies:

- restore the supremacy of British over EU law;
- return to preventative policing based on foot patrols;
- make each offence carry a minimum sentence of one third of its maximum sentence, or 15 years for life;
- restore grammar schools, restore O-levels, restore excellent Secondary Modern schools, and defend and restore Special Needs Education;
- introduce a legal presumption of equal parenting, restore the tax allowance for fathers, and allow paternity leave to be taken at any time in the first 18 years of the child’s life;
- help farmers and small businesses through a windfall tax on the supermarkets;
- defend village services, save shooting and fishing, repeal the hunting ban, and make Gypsies and Travellers obey the same planning laws as the rest of us;
- preserve the historic regimental system, rebuild the Royal Navy, and save the Royal Air Force;

And much, much more.

Real Common Sense Policies:

- nuclear power and clean coal technology;
- restore British overall control of our defence capability;
- dock Ministers’ pay if either spending or outcomes are lower in the North East than in Scotland or the South East;
- immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Afghanistan and Iraq;
- total opposition to lap-dancing clubs;
- an MP’s office in Consett as well as in Crook;

And much, much more.

A Real Parliamentary Force:

At present, only an Independent can introduce such Bills, amendments or motions. The party machines would never allow “their” MPs to do so.

But how could any Labour or Liberal Democrat MP, at least, fail to support the ones on incomes, health, employment rights, council housing, council services, public ownership, public transport, weapons of mass destruction, energy, defence, Afghanistan, Iraq or lap-dancing? How could they then answer to their local parties?

How could any Tory MP, at least, fail to support the ones on Europe, education, policing, sentencing, fathers’ rights, the countryside, the Armed Forces, energy, defence, Afghanistan, Iraq or lap-dancing? How could they then answer to their local parties?

Or how could any MP from the English regions oppose docking Ministers’ pay if either spending or outcomes were lower in their respective areas than in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland or the South East? How could they then answer to their local parties?

All they need is someone Independent enough to make them; to shame them into it if necessary. David Lindsay is that man. And from the consequent falling apart of the bankrupt old parties, proper parties will re-emerge.

A Real Chance of Winning:

In 2005, this constituency’s Independent vote, one third of the Tory vote, half the Liberal Democrat vote, and one third of the Labour vote added up to more than the remaining two thirds of Labour support. The sitting MP is retiring. Her would-be Labour successor will never knowingly have done any campaigning work, since that would be beneath her. The Liberal Democrats are hardly going to fight this seat. The Tories are not going to fight this seat at all. In short, this seat can be taken.

We need a captain in each community, who will know where our vote is and who will get out that vote. We need to start organising now. Anyone interested, please contact davidaslindsay@hotmail.com. Remember, we only need to be the first past the post. But we need to get our act together without delay.