The election in the Athens of the North

For the first time in my life I was uncertain as to how I would vote in a general election. In all previous ones I have voted Conservative with various degrees of enthusiasm. Obviously in 1979 it was necessary to remove the Labour government that had brought us inflation that eventually reached over 20%. No country can survive that. By 1997 inflation was down to just over 3%.

At the last Holyrood election I supported the SNP, partly as a tactical vote to remove the Labour incumbents. On the same day I did cast my vote for the Tory candidate for the Edinburgh City Council. I voted SNP in the recent Euro election.

I am fairly sympathetic to the idea of Scottish independence. A vigorous dose of fiscal reality would do wonders for Scotland. But ideally I would prefer implementation of the Freedom and Whisky plan of 2003:

Withdraw from the EU

Devolve all powers - except defence and foreign affairs - to the various national parliaments

Each parliament to be fiscally independent with contributions being made to the federal government in proportion to population

The federal government should be situated on the Isle of Man, which is not in any of the home countries but is equidistant from all four of them

The Irish Republic should be invited to unite with the North and rejoin the UK with Dublin taking its rightful place in the Anglosphere alongside Cardiff, Edinburgh and London

On Thursday morning I discussed my options with Mrs F&W:

(1) Vote Conservative even though they appear to be a bunch of wimps, unable to propose a proper classical liberal economic plan and distinctly wobbly on civil liberties.

(2) Vote SNP on the grounds that the UK cannot be saved and that an independent Scotland could possibly emerge satisfactorily from the wreckage.

I was still undecided when I got to the polling station. Next door was a cafe and I went in to have a further think. A copy of the Daily Mirror was on the table and needless to say it was full of reasons for voting Labour. At that point I was filled with dread and decided to look after number one. I didn't want Mr Darling to steal any more of my money. Despite what I wrote the other day, I held my nose, went in and voted Tory.