Feeling Perplexed

Policies, Parties and People

Yesterday, Lois and I went to a local hustings for NW Coventry. We came away feeling even more perplexed and unsure who to vote for; we were disappointed with the overall quality of candidates being put forward by the parties.

So, while we were wavering between a Green or a Labour vote, we are now even more uncertain, and pondering whether to base our votes on the policies, the parties or the people that we would like to see go through.

The only two certainties seem to be that we won’t be voting (on the basis of the policies, parties or principles) for the Conservative or Brexit Party candidates.

Our main options then are:

1. Vote Green – recognising that this is the party whose policies most align with our priorities; who, while they cannot hope to achieve anything more than an increased share of the overall vote, and maybe a few more MPs to support Caroline Lucas, are the Party of the future, and the only party to consistently take the environment and social justice seriously. The local candidate, Stephen Gray, seems keen and committed, but lacks experience and seems more suited for a role as a city councillor than a member of parliament. While our Green vote might make a statement, it is unlikely to count in any way in a Labour-Tory competition in NW Coventry.
2. Vote Labour – while we are members of the Green Party, it is the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership that we feel holds out the greatest hope for our country at this time. Reviewing their policies, almost all of these align with our own priorities, although several don’t go far enough. It may be that our Labour vote will help consolidate a Labour win in NW Coventry, and along with that an overall Labour majority. The local candidate, Taiwo Owatemi, is a woman from an ethnic minority and a health sector worker. However, she is not a Coventry resident, and came across poorly in the hustings, so it feels that she just isn’t ready to be an MP yet.
3. Vote Liberal Democrat – the local candidate, Greg Judge, came across as the most confident and competent of the candidates – and someone whom I believe we could trust to represent our constituency in Parliament. While we agree with many of the Lib Dem policies, there are others which seem to go against our principles, and those that are aligned generally don’t go far enough. In particular, we think their policy of revoking article 50 without a second referendum is misguided and won’t help heal the divisions that have arisen in our country. And, so far, we have failed to be inspired by Jo Swinson’s leadership.

So there we are. Do we vote on the basis of our Principles, the Party we would most like to see in government, or the Person whom we would most like to see represent our constituency in the next parliament?

We are open to any thoughts, comments, persuasion…