The Cornish Nationalists Mebwyon Kernow are set to mount a legal challenge to the plans by SKY, UTV and the BBC to hold leadership debates in the general election.
Despite the fact that they are not fielding candidates across the country and whilst it is clear they could never form a government, a spokesman for MK said "I cannot accept that we have been excluded. I know we could never form a government and I know that we get plenty of coverage in elections in Cornwall, but we want to get well known in other parts of the country too where we field no candidates and where we have no political concerns."
Note - This is al made up rubbish but perhaps Alex Salmond, who enjoys the privilege the MK don not have in the Scottish elections would like to make note. I don't believe for one moment that MK would be that childish as they are showing more maturity that the SNP.
Note to Alex
11 comments:
This country has a govrnment and an official opposition. Whether you like it or not, the other parties, including those having MPs, have no official status.
Thus in order to be free of legal challenges the debate should be confined to the two parties only, otherwise all the other parties such as Sinn Fein, Ulster Unionists, Respect and the Independent Member for Kidderminster would possibly have a legal claim. And based on the results of the EU elections, surely UKIP would have a claim based on their percentage of votes.
I'm looking forward to the court cases, they'll be far more interesting than the debate!
I believe you are teacher, clearly not of English
MK will be fielding candidates across the country. They will field a candidate in every constituency in the country called Cornwall!
And therein lies one of the many problems with this presidential debate, it makes the unionist argument the only legitimate argument. Nationalist and regionalist positions are dismissed out of hand as being irrelevant, despite the fact that many millions of voters will have the opportunity of voting for nationalist and regionalist parties.
With the Liberal Democrats being in the polling doldrums at the moment, there is a sporting chance that there will be more nationalist and regional MPs in the next Westminster Parliament than Lib Dem MPs!
And don't count on MK not challenging the debate as "all made up rubbish". It is inevitable that MK will support the SNP and Plaid in challenging this undemocratic and biased decision.
Lib Dems in the polling dolldrums ? What planet are you on. Polls have the Lib Dems in the 17-21% range consistently.
Prior to 2001 the Lib Dems were 13-15% and prior to 2005 it was 17-20% too. So the Lib Dems are on something of a high.
If UKIP field candidates in more than 90% of seats, which I think is a good threshhold, then Io think UKIP should be involved.
Of course I did not hear Alex Salmond demanding that UKIP be involved in the deabates in Scotland for the last Scottish elections.
Maturity? SNP?
Talk about wishful thinking.
It's not fort Alex Salmond to demand that UKIP is included in any debate, but for UKIP themselves to do so.
As UKIP came second in the last UK wide election they have a legitimate case to make such a demand and I strongly suspect that they will do so.
Clearly the most sensible measure is to allow those parties that are fielding a certain number of candidates to have a representative in on the debate.
Exactly Anthony. Everyone with any sense knows this, which is why Salmond cannot understand.
Amusing though it might be to watch the three sweating during the debates, we do NOT have a presidential system.
The very fact that so many parties DO have a legitimate grievance about being omitted means that these debates pervert our democracy and should not take place.
Agree with the poster above
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