Election Day!

Here in Scotland it's a big day tomorrow. We don't just have a referendum to respond to, but elections for the Scottish Parliament.

It's a bit odd that the referendum on AV is coupled with an electoral process for electing the Scottish Parliament which is much more "progressive" (a word that Mr Cartside used and which of course contains a value judgement).

Coming from a country where proportional representation is supported by everyone as a fairer system, I am biased towards proportional representation. Personally, I think AV is half baked, but a tad better than FPtP, so I'll vote yes.

However, I also see FPtP as a very British institution. The UK is maybe the oldest democracy in the Western World, and has a great tradition of governance. FPtP is part of this and I can understand that it's cherished and rightly so. It is maybe part of the British identity, national pride even. This is a country where democratic principles can live alongside a strong monarchy. I'm no monarchist, in fact, I absolutely loathe the principle, but I also admire Britain for the ability to pull it off and get the whole world to love and adore the newly wed couple. And of course, Britain does not have the same history as Germany; which is why the country as such is able to trust an electoral system and governmental design which could be abused (but never has been).

So I'm easy in relation to the referendum. To me, AV is a slightly fairer version of FPtP. It is no real departure, just a variation. The Scottish Parliament election, to me, are more of a compromise, by marrying FPtP and PR.

Some years ago, I taught undergraduates all about the German political system, and about the Scottish electoral system too - it was the time between Referendum for a Scottish Parliament its first election and the first term. Exciting times. However, none of the undergraduates knew that there was an element of PR in the Scottish Parliament elections.

Therein lies the problem. If the electorate doesn't know how to play the PR system, it's potential is wasted. I hope that tomorrow, people know that they have two votes, and two opportunities to create a parliament for Scotland. As for my constituency, Labour and SNP are the two constituency candidates that are head to head. So with my first vote, I'll be voting for the party I wish to see leading the country. With my second vote, however, I will take the opportunity to support a smaller party in the hope that they will get enough votes to maybe even form a coalition with the winner of the elections, thus making a real difference to Scottish politics.

Truth be told, I'm more excited about the Scottish elections than the referendum. Which actually, isn't that surprising at all. As ever, we'll be making a family event out of it, with all four of us walking to the polling station, and no doubt meeting our canvassing neighbour there. 

So who would I vote for?

I've been asking myself this question and ruffling my hair over it for quite some time now. Even if in the end I don't have to make my mind up because at least for these general elections, I'm not a UK citizen and therefore not eligible to vote, but still. It's not as straight forward as many make you believe. Now, just a summary of who I am - I passionately (yes yes, an overused word, but it's the best one around) believe in a society which offers equality for all. My main concern for the future is our over reliance on fossil fuels for food production and what will happen if fossil fuels run out. In Germany, my vote usually went to the Green Party and I was overjoyed to see them form a coalition government (the one before the current German government) and having decision making powers.

So you should think I would just transfer that vote to the equivalent party around here. But stop, the UK operates on a first past the post system. I live in Glasgow South, a constituency where the Labour majority is so vast that nobody has even bothered to canvas properly as long as I can think. Our Labour MP, if you look at his record, and his blog, to my mind would be better placed in a different party. And of course he'd be annoyed by this judgement. Bottom line is that I don't feel represented by him, and would quite like the seat to go to someone different.

That would be where tactical voting sets in. If you look at Scottish Parliament, European and even Council elections, it seems that the SNP is doing rather well in our constituency so I believed naively that if there is an alternative, it surely must be SNP. I also agree with this party on many issues that are dear to me, though I'd always be extremely reluctant to support any party who carries the word Nationalist in their name. For historical reasons and because I think nationalism is a whole lot of useless rubbish. But of course, general elections are different, and most people who would vote for the SNP in regional and local elections won't do it now. Therefore a) it's unlikely that any party would beat the apparently 10,000 majority Labour has, and b) it could only be beaten if we all agreed on who the alternative would be. Which we do not. I could just as well vote Green then. Or anyone else because the majority is thus that voting for anyone other than Labour translates to a wasted vote.

Then there's the issue of avoiding the worst case scenario, which actually would put me awfully close to voting Labour.

Plus I always wonder if a tactical vote is a dishonest vote anyway. I mean, is it right to vote for a candidate just because you don't like the face of your current MP? It's about the party, not the candidate, right? If that statement was true (and it is to me, as I would always make sure I vote for the party that represents my views best), FPTP is really the wrong system. If it's about the party, PR is the right approach. I guess in the UK it's just a little bit about the party, I suppose in general terms for forming a government, but in specific terms it's about a person. And it matters pretty little what party that person belongs to.

And that's the point where I get a headache because my mind is starting to explode.

Maybe I would be voting Lib Dems because they want to introduce PR. Not enough of a reason? Hm, not so sure anymore. At least it would mean in future that I can vote for the party of my choice and not waste my vote by doing so.

So let's look at the result of my email requesting my local candidates to support a Robin Hood Tax (that's a tax taken from banks to support the poorest in this country). SNP got back quickly and fully support it. Green Party came back a few days later and fully support it. LibDems got back twice and sent me a much longer response, much more detail, about their support for a similar financial transaction tax to be introduced alongside similar international measures - the proceeds of which would go to developing countries. Not quite the Robin Hood Tax but something for sure. Labour and Tories: no response.

A similar picture if you look at the feedback Southside Happenings' initiative got. Labour and Conservative Parties join the LibDems in not being bothered. The SNP scores highest points on the communication table.

Again, not a reason in itself to vote for them, but it doesn't endear me to the big 3 that they are rather reluctant to speak to me.

So then, who would I vote for if I could?

I have no idea. My vote would most definitely be a swing vote.

It's the BMB election Carnival!

It's this time of the fortnight again - Best of British Mummy (and Daddy) Blogging Carnival. And to honour the impending elections and what they may have in store for all of us, I'd called for entries that have some connection to the elections. I'm rather hopeful that this carnival will give lots of food for thought and a real insight into what's important to blogging parents in or from the UK. I was rather excited seeing the entries come through and reading about all the different takes on the elections, and I can promise that this carnival brings together anything from a humorous take on politics to serious asks from the MPs-to-be. Maybe it can even give some politicians an idea of what kind of policies parents are asking for?

Unfortunately, in the middle of gathering posts, my email provider has let me down big time. If you emailed me your post between 22nd and 26th April, I may not have received your email. I've tried to let people know but if you have submitted a post and it's not here, please do leave a comment with the link and I'll update the carnival asap to include it. So, I hope you are ready for this slightly different carnival and that you enjoy reading the posts as much as I have!

To start off, 21st Century Mummy criticises the benefit system in Benefits and Little Britain.

Over at It's a Mummy's Life, Holly muses about the elections and whether we can trust politicians well versed in spin.

Heather's election Notes from Lapland raise the issue of who should or shouldn't be allowed to vote, a topic so close to my heart at present that her post inspired me to write my own take on the topic with an added personal manifesto in Can I Vote Please, I even Have a Manifesto!.

The Sardine Tin also ponders the topic of voting in Sign(s) of the Times and wonders whether what we vote should be kept between the ballot box and yourself or be out in the open.

In a bun dance has a manifesto for more interesting elections on offer, especially as she can't see much difference between the main contenders anyway so don't miss her fantasy manifesto!

Muddling Along Mummy takes on the the candidates wives, and pays respect to the one who has decided not to be her husband's campaigning handbag in Perhaps the Greatest campaigning wife is the one who isn't?

Liz at Living with Kids also takes on the politician's wives theme in Behind every great man ... and how the focus on the wives distracts from the policies.

Diary of a (not so) Single Mum gets down to the knitty gritty of why she is a reluctant voter - disillusioned with the confrontational mindset of politicians that have you switch off before you listen to what they actually have to say. She also looks at the policies she agrees and doesn't agree with.

You can read about the issues that really matter to particularly a SAHM at TheMadHouse, including some obvious contradictions in the system. She also has a good few ideas of how things could be improved.

Find out what would happen if Yummy Mummy Flabby Tummy was running the country, and you may find a serious contender for the big 3.


Angels and Urchins reports the proposed new parent salary legislation and the political debate this is causing.

Iota from Not wrong, just different asks the question what kind of associations of the elections for children we are creating and how we may make politics interesting and exciting for children.

If you want to know what politicians need to do to win Kate's at Mum's the world vote, don't tally and head over to read her post on what's important to her particularly in the light of her children's future.

Emily over at Babyrambles shares what she likes about the election debates and how they could be even more exciting for her, and everyone really.

And if you can't wait for an election leaders' debate that is a bit more fun, why not head over to Bringing up Charlie, and you may even be the lucky winner of some fab DVDs.

Fraught Mummy of Brits (no longer) in Bosnia tackles the controversial issue and attitudes towards fully veiled women in the UK in Covered up, where she wonders how it is that more Muslim women cover up completely than in the Muslim country of Bosnia where she lived.

Frances from a parent's guide to the early years foundation stage explores the talk and realities of party policies in relation to the Early Years Foundation Stage in Education, the elections and the Early Years.

And moving on to primary school on a connected topic of pressurising our very young children, Victoria who blogs at It's a Small World After all asks quite rightly why children have to start school so very early in England in Education, Education, Education.

Believe it or not, Jack Straw is Nickie's NBF as she reveals on her blog Typecast, and she's got a photo to prove it! Which reminds me that I've yet to see any candidate canvassing in our area...

If there's one thing MrsW would change, it would be the introduction of Proportional Representation for the elections, have a look why on Clinically Fed Up (and you'll get a wonderful photo in the package too).

London City Mum ponders what politics in a parallel universe may look like. 


Clare Macnaughton wonders whether to vote Tory or not.

And lastly but definitely not leastly Single Parenthood. Tales from the Frontline has a look at Bigotgate and even dares to mention the I-word (that'll be immigration).

As a little addition for the not so politically minded amongst the BMB carnival readers, I've decided to include the entries I received which do not follow the suggested theme. With my email not working I couldn't really inform people and give them a chance to resubmit so I thought it would be better to just include the entries. Mummy has a Headache ponders how her children are copycats in From the Mouth of Babes. Mummy Musings muses about her Return to Work after her maternity leave. All Baby Advice tells us all about Czech Easter Traditions, while Red Ted Art demonstrates some Swedish Easter traditions and let's us get crafty making Swedish Hearts. Finally the Good Life Blog looks at the benefits of baby signing.

If you want to find out more about the Best of British Mummy Bloggers carnival, would like to find out about the schedule, contribute or even want to host it, you can find out all about it here. It was a great experience for me, I found great new blogs I hadn't come across before and the entries were simply inspiring to read.

Can I vote please? I even have a Manifesto!

Since I called for an election themed best of British Mummy (and daddy) Blogging carnival (entries can still be submitted by twitter @cartside, email cartside at googlemail.com and by leaving a comment to this post) it's about high time for my very own take on it.

However, there's a bit of a problem here. I'm not a UK citizen, though I have been resident here for the past 13 years. This means I have no right to vote at Westminster elections. I can still vote at all German elections, but I think it was after 5 years or so of living here, when the adventure was set to become somewhat more permanent, that I didn't feel it was right to vote at German elections. And at the same time I started to feel more strongly about wanting to vote here (I'm allowed to vote at local and Scottish elections). Personally I believe that it's a democratic duty and responsibility to vote - yet the politics I feel strongly about, the politics that affect me and my family, are in a country where I don't have the right to vote. So the question begs if I should change citizenship.

Even writing that sends shivers down my spine. Don't get me wrong, I love this country, enjoy living here and given the choice, in spite of some of my best friends still being in Germany, I would continue living here and probably will. But I'm still German. Changing citizenship just to be able to vote is wrong, yet what defines citizenship more than the right to vote? Heather over at Notes from Lapland has also blogged about this and the debate in the comments sections is more than interesting and I would encourage everyone to have a look.

Add to this the slight oddity that if you hail from a Commonwealth country and are resident in the UK you have the right to vote. Yet if you hail from a European Union country, an alliance that I would see as more relevant in our current day and age, and which accounts for the vast majority of immigration (and emigration) to the UK, you can't. Of course the reasons are historic, but history moves on and shouldn't this be reflected?

I don't suggest an easy answer. For the first few years I lived here, I didn't even want to be able to vote. My stay here didn't seem permanent, I was much more in touch with current affairs in Germany and voted at German elections. Now, for the upcoming elections, this has changed significantly. It happened over time, slowly, until now I feel left out and that something isn't quite right.

Yet I also know how many Germans feel about the right of their own immigrants to vote at their elections. The reluctance of letting people of Turkish decent vote, or stand as candidates, even though they do have German citizenship and are so integrated that they are more German than the Germans. But they will always be Turkish and foreign to a large part of the population. Any call to change the voting system to accommodate long term residency (which often is second or third generation residency) is met by the argument that this could mean that some people can vote in two countries, and that if they want to vote, they can always apply for citizenship. Like me really. And they don't, which I now, more than ever, understand.

So what would be my vote? Well, it's never easy and I'm also partial to proportional representation. There is no party that I fully support which is why I still haven't joined one. In Germany, I was green through and through, here, I choose and pick. My own manifesto would look something like this:

- Adopt the Scandinavian model of early years education. I.e. give parents a full year of paid leave (and that should be paid at a decent proportion of their salary). Then offer subsidised and high quality child care from 1 year, led by paedagogues. Make this system integrated and affordable. For low earners this would mean that the full cost of child care could be covered through subsidies (rather than the 80% maximum that we have now). Make child care cheaper for the second and third child so that women have a real choice if they want to work or not. Enable and encourage fathers to take a proportion of maternity leave.

- Invest in knowledge, technology and promotion of renewable energies and make them accessible to everyone, not just those who own their homes.

- Introduce a more progressive tax system to reduce the ridiculous inequalities in income

- Introduce a living wage that always pays so that there is a real incentive for people to work. At the same time I'm not opposed to a maximum wage (honest, I think it's obscene if people earn more than 100k even though I understand that living costs in London can be high, but maybe they'd be lower if nobody earned that much?)

- Improve tenants rights so that tenants have a better sense of ownership of their home. This would ease the pressure to buy. For example, tenants could be protected so they can't be thrown out of their flats/houses unless there is a significant reason, in return they could be responsible for improvements to the property

- Introduce an integrated public transport system in all cities which is always cheaper than the cost of petrol to undertake the same journey by car. Make cycling more attractive and safer.

- Change the tax and benefit system so that it's easier and people don't lose out on what's due to them.

- Prohibit energy companies to charge a premium that affects those with little disposable income more. Get rid of prepay metres or charging more for the first x units, and less for more.

- Rise to the challenge of reducing our dependency on fossil fuels (this is massive and will gnaw at the heart of our cosy capitalist life styles, yet I believe it's the biggest challenge of all and one we will have to face sooner or later - and if we face it sooner, it may not be so difficult later)

- Use alternatives to prison sentences if these alternatives are proven to be more effective

- Reduce military expenditure, especially on nuclear weapons.

- Introduce an immigration amnesty for anyone who has been resident here for over 5 years and who on the whole abides by the law. Make the asylum system fairer so that anyone with a genuine claim is given refugee status. Particularly change the legislation so that persecution which is specific to women is recognised equal to persecution which is typical for men.

- End the detention for immigration purposes of children. It's wrong to imprison children. It's even more wrong if they haven't committed any crime.

- Promote flexible working hours, part time work for both women and men so that anyone can have an acceptable work - life balance; including at the point of advertising a post (job share should be offered by default)

- Fill the loopholes of tax credits, e.g. where one parent works and the other parent is a student or offer a right to subsidised childcare which depends on family income and work/education status only.

I'm sure I've forgotten rather a lot, but I'll leave it at this because it's more than enough to get started. If you have anything to add, why not blog about it or leave a comment? I'd love to hear about more ideas.

BMB carnival - theme and call for entries

I have the great pleasure to be hosting the next Best of British Mummy and Daddy Blogger Carnival on 27th April. I'm currently on the dodgiest internet connection imaginable and navigating to pages is close to impossible, so no blogging until I'm back in the UK, but do feel free to send me contributions to blog at cartside dot co dot uk (replacing the usual parts of the address with @ and .). The guidelines are that I'm to pick the 25 best entries - but to be  honest, I don't think that I want to make such judgement as it would be biassed towards what I find an interesting read. So I decided that I would set a theme for this carnival, especially as there hasn't been one recently - and I really hope it inspires rather than puts you off.

I'd like to hear your calls to our politicians, candidates and current MPs, from your own perspective - shaped by being a parent. It can be a manifesto, it can be a right moan, an idea for change that politicians could take on, it can focus on a particular theme (such as childcare, tax credits, child benefit, being a single parent etc), it can be your children's views, it can be specific or a collection of random thoughts, anything at all really. I personally would love to see this as an opportunity so close to the general elections to bring together the voices of parents without a specific party line, just steeped in experience and the knowledge of what current policies and practice mean to you.

Oh, it can be funny or serious, I really don't want anyone to be put off by a semi political theme - feel very free to take your own stance on it.

I can't wait to get your contributions, please try to have them in for 26th April noon :)

We can all make childcare an election topic

The elections have been called, and already I can no longer bear to listen to the radio on my long drive to work. You're looking at an individual highly interested in politics, who has a well grounded belief in the democratic process, the importance of elections. Yet the pre-election time, as for many I suspect, is driving me insane.

Take this newspaper style leaflet that our work-local Labour candidate produced. Real stories of real people. More real stories of real people on the radio, saying something of all politicians being the same and how they won't vote because of that. Then the so accused politicians either mouthing what they think is the voice of the people or telling us how impossible their relevant opponent is.

Boooring. In fact, annoying.

To make things worse, I'm sure immigration will be made an election topic and a whole load of rubbish will be thrown at us uninformed or informed non-voters yet again. Bleurgh.

And then, oh blessed be this day, I read something that made sense. Shame it didn't come from a politician or candidate, but hey, no worries, candidates can actually sign up to it! Imagine, no work for them, just read, be convinced and make it part of your policy calls. Easy.

The Daycare Trust have published an election manifesto of kinds, a childcare charter. It's short enough, plain English, and manages to put into easily understandable words what I've been trying to get straight in my head for a long time indeed. A must read. Go and have a look, honestly. It makes so much sense and there's not a comma I don't agree with. It has clear asks, and makes a strong case why childcare is such an important issue, one that could help reduce child poverty and social inequalities significantly, at a relatively low cost which would pay itself back at least 7 fold in years to come.

It's good of this charter to exist, but its existence won't change the world. So the Daycare Trust is asking you (yes, you!) to contact your local candidates and ask them to sign up to the charter and make it an election topic. I'd much rather have childcare as an election topic than immigration. It would do my ageing heart an awful lot of good. The Daycare Trust is also very nice to us potential/future/willing campaigners by giving us all the tools needed to contact our candidates - a model letter, model questions, an opportunity to join the force and all that.

I'm on board. Are you?

PS in other news: tonight (Thursday 8th April) the second series of How the Other Half Live will be shown on Channel 4 at 9pm. I'm sure the episode will have me in two minds again but there's no doubt that it manages to bring issues around inequalities in the UK to your living room in a very digestible and entertaining format.