School Question Time in North Somerset

Went to a school political question time in the Woodspring/North Somerset constituency today, with excellent LibDem parliamentary candidate Brian Mathew, also the nice-but-lightweight Labour candidate, and a speaker for the Tories because Liam Fox MP (Con) was in London unfiddling his expenses on Parliamentary business. You will be pleased to know that I have mislaid my notes, so no blow by blow account, but the questions were very smart and to the point. "What will you do for the Young Peeps?" (My answer: skateparks, a good education, and a decent future). "Why should we vote for a bunch of expenses fiddling shysters?" (My answer: Greens have good record of probity, and we need radical political reform, beginning with FPTP because expenses claims are proportional to majority, &c.)  I really laid into the electoral system, and got a sympathetic response - and a clenched fist salute. Cool. That's what we need. Assertiveness. I pointed the finger of shame at the ConLab duo who support the disgusting FPTP system. 

The Lib Dems could possibly take Woodspring, given Dr Fox's fracas with the money box. Brian is a good guy, a water engineer who goes to Africa, which deserves respect.

I chatted to the Tory, who is a nice enough guy, in banking and insurance. We discussed the financial crisis, and the question of bankrupting Fred Goodwin to annihilate the RBS debt. He did not raise any technical objections.

The last question was interesting "Which party would you be in if not your own?" I said LibDem, the LibDem said Green, and the other two ducked the question, but afterwards, one said it would have to be Green. It would have been good if they had all said Green, which is clearly what they felt.

In the afternoon, I went in to talk to a group of support workers about Cutting the Ties.

When I came home I did my NHS reappraisal form with no enthusiasm whatsoever.