Cuts or No cuts that is the Question not How deep

Just as the unlikely coalition of conservatives & liberals are about to plunge the country into the valley of a thousand cuts, I thought it was time to look at possibilities other than losing jobs, markets and decreasing peoples standards of living. Is there any alternatives? The government would have us believe not, and of course it's all labours fault , they spent too much when they were in power . Agreed the country has a massive debt, £156 billion:currently standing at around 40 % of GDP Horrific isn't it ? well yes, but not when you remember that the country owed far more in 1945, around 200% of GDP and then we embarked on the largest construction program the country has ever seen. House building and infra reconstruction created jobs, income and wealth leading to the "Never had it so Good " era of Harold McMillan. So the question I ask is not where to cut and how to to cut but why cut at all ?

The fact that the 1945 Labour government were not re-elected even though they increased their vote was in fact my main reason for wanting a fairer voting system. Now however, although I would love to see more power in the hands of smaller parties, eg Greens.The abdication of morals and realignment of principle that the Lib-Dem party has undergone makes me wary. If all PR will bring is a clamour for power at any cost why should we believe any of them?It would be too much to ask them to campaign honestly:"I think that more schools should be built, but if the Tories get in we will support their plan to abolish schools altogether"or perhaps "We believe in low taxes, but if Labour have the majority we'll support an massive hike in income tax & VAT"

One thing I never want to see is a Lib-Dem government, just as their predecessors the Whigs were absorbed into the other parties, so Nick Clegg has consigned his party to the dustbin of history, I'm sure the people of Sheffield will welcome him with open arms when he goes back there.It is a shame, because Liberal Party history is littered with good leaders and good deeds, much social improvement in the country was brought about by liberal philanthropists and their political endeavour. They cannot survive on history, the electorate will remember then as the U-turn party of British Politics , unlike the children I see playing on the common who wait to see which way the wind is blowing before they launch their kites, the liberals float theirs high in the sky and then proceed to pull it back rapidly in the opposite direction.

So if it means giving any power however small to the Lib-Dems I'll vote against AV in the May referendum. We may have a flawed system but at least its straightforward and upfront , no smokeless rooms behind closed doors with dirty dealing and jobs for the boys. Credit must however be given to Nick Clegg for he must be an accomplished yoga expert to bent over backwards so far in an effort to please & grab power.