Margaret Hales, Chairman of Conservatives Abroad in Jávea, said “Ken spoke as usual with great knowledge and common sense but he left the best bit until the last few minutes of his speech. He told us that Prime Minister David Cameron had asked Nick Clegg to oversee proposals for changes in the electoral system. This would include proposals to abolish the restriction on British Citizens living overseas being able to vote, the so-called 15-year rule. This would honour the Conservative election pledge. We are delighted with this news. We have been campaigning for years for our democratic right to be restored”. Margaret added “I encourage all who supported this change to write in with their support. We must continue lobbying right up until the universal right to vote is restored onto the statute book and I invite everyone to write to Nick Clegg or the Electoral Commission so that they are in no doubt of the depth of feeling on this matter.”

So first, I want to thank again for all your hard work and dedication, not just over the past few weeks but over the past few years. I literally could not have done this without you. We can be immensely proud of how far we have come from our defeat in 2005.

We have seen the election of nearly 100 extra MPs, we have gained more seats than in any election since 1931 and we are now the party of government once again. No-one should underestimate the scale of our achievement in such a short space of time, and it would not have been possible without your support and commitment to the cause.

Second, I want to tell you what I can about the agreement we have made with our new partners in government, the Liberal Democrats. As I said after the election last week, more than anything else Britain needs strong, stable and decisive government at this point in our history. And it was in the national interest that we achieved this on a secure basis.

This is why I made a big, open and comprehensive offer to the Liberal Democrats last Friday. I signalled, from the very start of the negotiations, that we had to respect the verdict of the electorate and work together to find solutions to the profound problems facing our nation: the debt crisis, our deep social problems and our broken political system.

Today, we have achieved this much-needed agreement, overcoming political differences to forge a new government in the national interest. Of course, we must recognise that all coalitions are about compromise. This one is no different. And I want to take this opportunity to reassure about what was agreed.

The agreement commits the next government to a significantly accelerated reduction in the budget deficit, to cut £6 billion of government waste this financial year and to stop the jobs tax. The agreement also allows us to carry out key elements of the reform agenda we outlined in our manifesto – an agenda vital to turning our country round – including welfare and school reform. Moreover, we have protected our nuclear deterrent. And there will be no amnesty for illegal immigrants, nor the handover of any additional powers to the EU.

Of course, the agreement also reflects the key priorities and objectives of the Liberal Democrats. This includes fairer funding in education, a fairer tax system and political reform – including a referendum on changing the voting system to the alternative vote.

But the past few days have not just been about compromise. What was clear as talks progressed is the common ground between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. And that is displayed in this agreement, with our commitment to building a green economy, decentralising power and protecting civil liberties – including scrapping ID cards.

We campaigned on the belief that we’re all in this together – and can only solve our problems together to build a stronger, more responsible society. I am confident that the coming together of two political parties to form one strong government marks a new era for Britain and for British politics. Now, let’s get down to work.

David Cameron

Prime Minister & Leader of the Conservative Party

What has been of particular note is that every time senior Labour MPs have spoken in public, post election, about their insistence in staying in power the £ has dipped substantially against the €… Every time either Clegg or Cameron has spoken of the way forward from here and the possibility that colloboration offers, then the £ has risen within seconds…

The employment rate for the three months to February 2010 was 72.1 per cent. The rate was down 0.3 on the quarter and it has not been lower since the three months to October 1996. The number of people in employment fell by 89,000 on the quarter to reach 28.82 million. There were falls in employment over the quarter for both full-time workers (down 59,000) and part-time workers (down 30,000). The number of employees and self-employed people working part-time because they could not find a full-time job increased by 13,000 on the quarter to reach 1.05 million, the highest figure since comparable records began in 1992.

The unemployment rate for the three months to February 2010 was 8.0 per cent. The rate was up 0.1 on the quarter and it has not been higher since the three months to September 1996. The number of unemployed people increased by 43,000 over the quarter to reach 2.50 million, the highest figure since the three months to December 1994. The number of people unemployed for up to six months fell by 46,000, to reach 1.22 million. However, the number of people unemployed for more than twelve months increased by 89,000 over the quarter to reach 726,000, the highest figure since the three months to July 1997.

The number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (the claimant count) decreased by 32,900 between February and March 2010 to reach 1.54 million. The claimant count has fallen for four out of the last five months.

The inactivity rate for the three months to February 2010 was 21.5 per cent. The rate has not been higher since the three months to October 2004 and it is up 0.3 on the quarter. The number of inactive people of working age increased by 110,000 over the quarter to reach a record high of 8.16 million. This increase in inactivity was largely driven by the number of students not in the labour market which increased by 71,000 on the quarter to reach 2.30 million.

The number of vacancies for the three months to March 2010 was 475,000, up 9,000 over the quarter.

The earnings annual growth rate for total pay (including bonuses) was 2.3 per cent for the three months to February 2010, up from 0.8 per cent for the three months to January 2010. This increase in the growth rate was mainly driven by the financial sector where there have been higher bonuses than last year and a timing effect; some companies who paid their annual bonuses in January last year paid them in February this year.

The earnings annual growth rate for regular pay (excluding bonuses) was 1.7 per cent for the three months to February 2010, up from 1.5 per cent for the three months to January 2010.

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?ID=12

We hope that this evening will include

• A video link to our Chairman, Margaret, who will be in Eastleigh constituency working with the team trying hard to ensure that Chris Huhne (LibDem) becomes an ex-MP (majority only 568).
• An up-date on the situation in our sponsored constituency of Bradford West.

This is on 6 May at the home of David and Jenny Decker. (For those who don’t know their house, instructions are available through jca@itude.org.uk). Please note this change of venue- it is not where this event was originally suggested.

When Thursday May 6 from 9.00 pm. Fish and Chip supper at 9 30 pm

What Visual and electronic links to the Election Coverage in the UK

How much 13€, including Fish and Chip supper, wine, beer and soft drinks

Fun Sweepstakes to guess things like

• Total Conservative seats- and those (hopefully few!) for Labour and Lib Dems
• First declaration
• First Conservative gain
• UKIP first seat (if any … pray hard!)
• Overall majority

… and for those who can’t stand the intellectual suspense … a Whisky raffle!

Supper is at 9 30 pm. Please send your meal choice in advance:

1.       Fish and chips

2.       Steak pie and chips

3.       Half roast chicken and chips

Mushy peas are available with all options. Please state with mushy peas or not!!

Send your choices as soon as possible (by return if you can) to me at hales.family@yahoo.co.uk or 966 197 239. The deadline is Monday 3 May

Hope to see you all there!

Gerald

Dr Gerald Hales JP

Secretary and Membership Secretary

Conservatives Abroad Spain, Jávea branch

www.javeaconservatives.org

(+34) 966 197 239

Low Resolution version – 3 Mb

Download the 2010 Conservative manifesto (3.04 megs)

The Conservative Manifesto 2010

A country is at its best when the bonds between people are strong and when the sense of national purpose is clear. Today the challenges facing Britain are immense. Our economy is overwhelmed by debt, our social fabric is frayed and our political system has betrayed the people. But these problems can be overcome if we pull together and work together. If we remember that we are all in this together.

Some politicians say: ‘give us your vote and we will sort out all your problems’. We say: real change comes not from government alone. Real change comes when the people are inspired and mobilised, when millions of us are fired up to play a part in the nation’s future.

Yes this is ambitious. Yes it is optimistic. But in the end all the Acts of Parliament, all the new measures, all the new policy initiatives, are just politicians’ words without you and your involvement.

How will we deal with the debt crisis unless we understand that we are all in this together? How will we raise responsible children unless every adult plays their part? How will we revitalise communities unless people stop asking ‘who will fix this?’ and start asking ‘what can I do?’ Britain will change for the better when we all elect to take part, to take responsibility – if we all come together. Collective strength will overpower our problems.

Only together can we can get rid of this government and, eventually, its debt. Only
Together can we get the economy moving. Only together can we protect the NHS. Improve our schools. Mend our broken society. Together we can even make politics and politicians work better. And if we can do that, we can do anything. Yes, together we can do anything.

So my invitation today is this: join us, to form a new kind of government for Britain.

Read the Conservative Manifesto 2010

Download the 2010 Conservative manifesto (3.04 megs)

Mr Clegg tells expats they can’t have the vote

By Majorcan Pearls Last updated: March 29th, 2010

7 Comments Comment on this article

Just fancy that. A member of the Liberal Democrats on behalf of leader Nick Clegg, has written to James Preston, heroic campaigner for the expat right to vote, to say that his party supports existing legislation preventing British expats from voting back home after residing overseas for more than 15 years.

That’s all very well for Mr Clegg to say but surely he can’t have his cake and eat it? Like Gordon Brown, he seems happy enough for British expats like Mr Preston to keep contributing to the government’s coffers, but doesn’t concede that they should be able to vote in UK parliamentary elections. Perhaps the leader of the Liberal Democrats is just too blasé to bother about garnering the vote of an estimated 5.5 million British expats, approximately 10 per cent of the UK population, living overseas. Of course if short-sighted Mr Clegg did the maths he might realise what an impact such a collective vote could have on his ailing party.

Mr Clegg and his Spanish born wife: voting double standards?

Interestingly his own wife, the exotically named Miriam González Durántez, refuses to become a British citizen which means that as he trails behind in third place in the political race, he can’t even count on his wife to vote for him. But maybe she has other fish to fry back home. After all, Mrs Clegg is the daughter of a prominent right wing Spanish conservative who was a former mayor of Valladolid. Unlike British expats, Mrs Clegg has not been shunned by her country of origin and is able to continue voting back in Spain, no doubt for the party her father used to back. I wonder what Nick Clegg thinks about that. Does he approve of his wife being given the vote in her own country when he is vehemently opposed to doing the same for British citizens residing overseas? Of course, should Miriam Gonzales Durantez deign to become a British citizen one day, she would be able to vote in UK parliamentary elections unlike James Preston, who has 300 years of British ancestry behind him.

I hope for Mr Clegg’s sake that his high flying lawyer wife doesn’t decide to take up a lucrative post back home in the future. If that were to happen and Mr Clegg and the family relocated to Spain, he might, perish the thought, find himself disenfranchised from voting back in the UK.

The Labour Government, untroubled by the quality of the surface, has professed to be on the Road to Recovery for thirteen years. Unfortunately the gear was stuck in reverse – and now they are on the same road in triplicate, so look out for a fatal crash if they win the coming election!