“UK Elections. Democracy at Work?”

The result is hardly a surprise, the reality being that this is a protest vote from the British people against a government which has stood by as the country lurches from one disaster to another. We have had seven different Prime Ministers in eight years so the likelihood of any continuity was never going to be on the cards, and the recent leadership debacles where the door of 10 Downing Street was revolving with regularity as one leader after another was despatched. This was an affront to the British public as they were given no choice as to who was leading the country, but democracy was the last thing on Conservative minds, and this was never far from the reality of their leadership.

Listening to the political commentators today, we are hearing about how Starmer has changed the Party, blah blah blah, but another reality is that a monkey could have been at the helm and their victory would still have been assured.  Let us be in no doubt, this is not so much a vote for Labour as it is a protest vote against the Conservatives. Starmer was hardly a dynamic Opposition leader in Parliament, in fact, as he quipped himself, as a bay was crying and the mother was wondering how to get the child to sleep, the great man suggested he make a speech, and that perfectly sums up the former Barrister.

As Europe swings violently to the Right in most other elections of late, a Labour victory in no way has signified that the UK has swung to the Left, as today’s Labour Party is not very different from the Conservative Party at all, so I personally do not see much change at all in any department, and this includes the country’s stance on Ukraine and Sanctions, as it is already known that Starmer is a Washington stooge, having already made a trip there not too long ago.

The big story promised to be Nigel Farage’s Reform Party which promised to be the ultimate protest vote, as many Conservative voters would never vote Labour, so Reform and its strong anti immigration stance looked to be a viable option along with the Liberal Democrats  – the Party which no-one is really very sure exactly what they stand for, save for issues which would promise to further divide an already divided British society.

So, British democracy has been at work, but how democratic it our first past the post voting system. Perhaps it is best illustrated by looking at the number of votes that each party received. In terms of seats won, Labour won 412, Conservatives 121, LibDems 71 and Reform 4. These were the main parties, with apologies to the Greens, who actually won seats, but who votes for them, goodness only knows. In terms of percentages of votes won, however, the actual votes received tell a very different story, putting the democracy claim under the spotlight.

Despite this huge victory in terms of seats won, Labour only received 35% of the national vote, which somehow translates into these 412 seats and a huge majority in Parliament. On top of this, their percentage of the vote has increased by only 2% following the last election. Let us add to this fact that Reform won 15% of the national vote to get only 4 seats, and the LibDems got 71 seats for a 13% share! This, we are told is a democracy, but these results tend to illustrate something very different. Labour, with only 35% of the votes cast behind them, have managed to secure a huge majority in Parliament!!

Reform indeed took many Conservative votes on their way to securing 15% of that national vote, only to receive 4 seats in the House of Commons. This is a very flawed voting system which ensures the ‘big two’ maintain their grip on power, and unless there is change, to say that we are a true democracy is untrue, and the results of yesterday’s general election truly illustrates.

And are we likely to see any change in our reckless Foreign Policy? In a word, NO. Starmer is true to the Washington dogma. His support of Ukraine, NATO and Israel is unfailing, although it remains to be seen who the actors will be on the international stage itself, there will be no change. We must, however, be thankful that the likes of ‘Lord’ Cameron, Grant Shapps snd the spectre of Boris Johnson are, for the moment, gone, but not to say consigned to history. A Labour government is not a change for this country. Only by showing true Leadership, that is, free from the shackles of Washington, can we really expect change in this country. The continued slide into the abyss of social division, economic stagnation and reckless foreign policy is a concern. Starmer uses the word ‘service’ time and again in his speeches. My concern being, who is he actually talking about serving, Washington or the British Public? This is a question that can be answered only in time, but how much time do we actually have?”