General Election

[fred c]

A "make believe site" that has been in existence for well over a decade, that has achieved more to effect local issues & politics than the towns Hartlepool Mail & has been at the forefront of exposing the Scandals that have been a feature of The TorLab Mob.

Make believe site ?............ I think not.

[steveL]

Other than making a novelty first speech in Westminster, which all new MPs are allowed as part of their induction, I wouldn't expect Picton on his own to change Hartlepool's lot at all but I'm not sure if that's the point.

If Picton were to actually win the seat, then I see it as effectively 'parking' the constituency in a lay-by with a big For Sale sign on it where it will stay until one of the main parties decides to actually do something positive for Hartlepool to win it back.

It means, of course, that for five years the town will not really have anyone in Westminster championing the town's cause (although I'm sure Picton would disagree with that) but then, to me, that's how it's been for years, so no change there.....

[not4me]

Not sure if you've got that quite right Steve. The way things are looking, Picton's one vote could be quite a valuable commodity in the commons after the election and quite a bargaining chip..

[not4me]

Codswallap. This is a BBC documentary and has already been broadcast across the globe. I can see the relevance:

• an economic crash
• a new party promising to be all things to all men
• a convenient scapegoat to blame for all the country's ills
• intolerance of others

[fred c]

FOR SALE

HARTLEPOOL

A Town of 90,000 Inhabitants which is need of A Major Refurbishment

Interested Parties Apply Via The Ballot Box In 2020

[Balotelli]

'If Picton were to actually win the seat, then I see it as effectively 'parking' the constituency in a lay-by with a big For Sale sign on it where it will stay until one of the main parties decides to actually do something positive for Hartlepool to win it back.'

...and in the meanwhile have somebody who will stumble from one gaffe to another for a whole five years?

[Sanddancer]

Getting rid of Weight would just be the kick that Labour needs in Hartlepool....it would certainly shake things up at local council level!

[grim reaper]

I think that's just about a full house;
We now have Andy Burnham stating Labour's introduction of 24hr drinking 'was a mistake'. 
We've had Ed. Milliband saying it was 'wrong' to open our borders to almost a million migrants. 
Jack Straw said it was a 'spectacular mistake' to allow open borders. 

Ed. Milliband states 'we made mistakes on welfare payments in the past' and now promises a cap on social security payments. 
Ed. Balls has said 'I have learnt from my mistakes in the financial crisis'. 

Even G. Brown has come out with 'I made a big mistake over the handling of financial regulations in the run up to the 2008 banking crisis'. 

And now we have Labour's Margaret Hodge (Chair of the Commons public accounts committee) receiving more than £1.5 million in shares from a family business, that was invested in the tax haven of Liechtenstein...you know, one of those places SHE sat in judgement over with regard to Amazon, Google, HSBC and others avoiding tax. 
And people accuse Nigel Farage of suspect money deals!!
Labour, the party of the working class...I think not.

Finally, you have the 'usual suspects' standing up for the right of migrants from virtually every nation on earth  to access our borders. And yet, when a young man from Ingleby Barwick wishes to stand as our MP, there are calls of derision because he is an 'outsider' and not from the town! F****** hypocrite.

I think a number of people on here have forgotten the prime result we all desire, the removal of Wright and as many of his coterie in the civic centre as possible.
That's why it's UKIP for MP and PHF for Hart Ward for me.
Hart village will never forget the gypsy fiasco.

[Johnny Bongo]

Has anyone on this forum (who has a good grasp of the political feeling in this town AND a good grasp of maths!) sat down and worked out any permutations regarding the chances of each GE candidate?  For example, what was Iain Wrights majority last time and which party came nearest.  If people decide to vote for either UKIP or Stephen Picton, what number of votes are needed to win, based on possibly disgruntled Labour voters (re- the Hospital saga, the Mayors lies, etc)  switching to the above?  Are the Tory votes approximately the same amount every GE?  As the time draws near, maybe tactical voting might be the only answer to get rid of Labour/ Wright, even though town folk might not necessarily wish to vote UKIP, etc.  Saying that, many people that I've spoken with have said they'll vote UKIP or the Green Party...anything but Labour! 

[Hopingforbetter]

This maybe of interest. It is YouGov Nowcast constituency poll for Hartlepool. https://yougov.co.uk/#/constituency/204/nowcast/

[steveL]

I haven't sat down and done the precise maths, but if getting rid of Wrighty is the sole goal then voting Tory is the answer (based on 2010) - oh my God, did I really type that 

[steveL]

This maybe of interest. It is YouGov Nowcast constituency poll for Hartlepool. https://yougov.co.uk/#/constituency/204/nowcast/

Based on to many generalisations to be useful.

[seaton]

The above post is not only below the belt but nasty and uncalled for.
You need serious treatment for putting on a public site such bile.

Obviously one of the torlab mob or maybe even one of the Acker Bilks  what a ridulous statement !

[mk1]

Obviously one of the torlab mob or maybe even one of the Acker Bilks  what a ridulous statement !

More like a Mr Man from the Mail site...........

[DRiddle]

I wouldn't pay too much attention to that yougov poll. It has Mr Picton (I guess plus the other Indys) behind both the greens and the Lib Dems. The reality is Mr Picton alone is likely to poll more than both those two particular parties combined.