The end is almost in sight. Exactly what ‘end’ though, could be read in a number of ways.
I refer to the end of the General Election campaign, of course, but listening to the three leaders last night, depending on the colour of your tie, it could almost be the ‘end of the world’ if the wrong lot get in.
The end could also be in sight for Gordon Brown, irrespective of which party gets in. With a hung Parliament looking an increasing possibility, Nick Clegg has already given the broadest hint possible that while he could work with Labour, Brown might be a stretch too far. And ‘Bigotgate’ will hardly have helped Brown’s cause.
Whoever gets in, however, has a mighty hard task on their hands getting this country back on economic track. As I said this morning on the James Churchfield programme on BBC Radio Cornwall, while the leaders’ debates have provided a valuable insight into personalities, specific policies are still a bit of a cloudy issue.
Just how they are going to bail us out of this mess is still a little confused. What is clear is that the situation is worse than anybody wants to admit. Admitting to the full extent of austere measures that will, in all likelihood, need to be taken could be election suicide.
The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, is said to have told an American economist recently that the party that does win the election “will be out of power for a whole generation because of how tough the fiscal austerity will have to be”.
With that in mind, perhaps Clegg and Cameron should take a step back for a moment and be careful what they wish for. They’re still young men. Surely they can wait a few more years, sitting in the relative comfort of opposition. And then the world would be theirs for the taking for years to come!
“Mr Brown!” they should say. “It’s for you!”
Who do you think is best for Cornish businesses? Does it really matter who wins? Would a hung Parliament lead to outright chaos? We want to hear your views, use the comment box below or comment on our Facebook or Twitter pages.
