| Party | Seats | Description |
| Tories | 317 | Still can't believe they didn't get a majority. |
| Labour | 262 | Still haven't realised they didn't get a majority. |
| Scottish Nationalists | 35 | Haggis-munching lefty separatists. |
| Lib Dems | 12 | Still bitter with the Tories from last time they formed a coalition. |
| Democratic Unionists | 10 | Spud-munching Protestant loyalists. |
| Sinn Féin | 7 | Spud-munching Catholic separatists. |
| Plaid Cymru | 4 | Leek-munching lefty separatists. |
| Caroline Lucas | 1 | Greeny. |
| John Bercow | 1 | Unaligned speaker of the house. Formally Torie. |
| Sylvia Hermon | 1 | Spud-munching loyalist who split with her party rather than aligning with the Tories. |
Nominally, the number of seats needed to form a majority is 326. However, the number of seats needed to form an effective majority depends on how many seats Sinn Féin wins, since they apparently refuse to attend parliament on principle. Therefore, if my maths is not incorrect, the number of seats needed for a majority in the current parliament is 322.
So long as the Tories can keep the DUP on side, they're going to have a comfortable majority. However, if they fall out, they're going to have to pull at least five seats from somewhere else. Looking at what's on that list though, I don't see where they'd pull them from. Expect the pork to flow in Northern Ireland over the next five years.
11 comments :
I'm not sure if this is right but it appears that by shacking up with the DUP, May relinquishes the supposed 'neutral mediator' role of the British Gov in Nth Ireland. If she doesn't meet DUP demands then they might pack up shop (unlikely methinks) but generally speaking she will be 'taking sides' with the DUP which will probably kick things off in Northern Ireland all over again, raising the spectre of yet more terrorism when MI5 don't seem to be keeping a lid on things as it is
It's a pretty kettle of fish
Thanks for the info, Squib; that's very interesting indeed.
I heard a man-on-the-street interview with a bloke from Northern Ireland today, and he was saying that since the Brexit vote, the usual left/right political divide has evaporated and the old loyalist/separatist divide has returned. He was worried that having the DUP hold the balance of power would "re-activate" the other side. Unfortunately, this was never expanded upon, but I'm starting to get the idea.
Note that they are now calling May a 'dead woman walking' and 'living dead'. I said she had a touch of zombie about her!
Interestingly, since you originally said that Squib, I've noticed a couple of memes floating around with May as a vampire/zombie/undead-thingy.
Probably shouldn't be surprised by the nicknames. You could hear the knives being sharpened before the final tallies came in.
If she somehow manages to hang on to the leadership, or loses it—but then gets it back down the track, then I expect to see the "risen from the grave" memes kick into high gear.
Don't like her chances though.
OK I have to say this - what is WITH that massive chain she's been wearing around her neck like WHAT is that all about. She's been wearing it all week. It is absurd
Since I get most of my news through radio & podcasts, I had to look up what you were talking about Squib. What I found was articles going back years, discussing May's propensity for "gangsta rapper" chains.
I assume this is the one you're talking about, since it was supposedly taken yesterday, but this was probably the most ridiculous one I found.
Maybe she's subconsciously trying to telegraph how tough she is. You know, like "gangsta rappers" do. Maybe she'll get a teardrop tattoo next.
There's a lot of people commenting that May getting into bed with the DUP will restart the whole mess in NI again. It's disconcerting because we also need that like a hole in the head.
Though a few Catholic bombs would stop racists with short memories screaming about Muslims all being terrorists, I guess.
I also wondered if she was tapping into the British Bulldog symbol
Or if she was a bit of a sadomasochist in the bedroom
Thank Squib; now I'm imagining Tory cabinet meetings devolving into full-on bondage sessions. Gives the term "parliamentary whip" a whole new meaning.
Suze; I dunno how much of a silver lining that is, but I guess it's something.
Can I also say how disappointed I am with the lack of info I've gotten from the BBC over the dysfunction in the North Ireland Assembly, stemming from the "Cash for Ash" scandal.
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