Disappointment but also an opportunity

To all who helped in our campaign in SW Surrey and who gave me your vote – thank you

There is of course great disappointment but also a once in a lifetime opportunity for our Party to secure electoral reform and fairness in our voting system. I hope that Nick Clegg will take that opportunity.

Cameron has not ‘sealed the deal’ with the electorate and won their trust.

So far as South West Surrey is concerned we must assess where we are and where we go from here, but for the time being a period of reflection is needed. It must also be said that my opponent Jeremy Hunt has proved a popular MP and I pay tribute to him.

A tsunami of support for the Tories swept across the South of England and we could not stand up against it. But we must also remember our duty to stand by our Liberal Democrat values. Nearly a third of the voters of South West Surrey voted for us and they deserve nothing less.

Mike Simpson

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This is to help voters in Farnham Godalming Haslemere and SW Surrey villages decide

After our successful campaign to save Farnham’s Water Meadows we have launched a new ‘Protect Our Greenspace’ campaign in Badshot Lea

• You will get a fresh voice at Westminster

• I will challenge the political establishment on behalf of ordinary people

• I will speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves

• I will work to bring real reform to our political system

• I will live in the constituency, not in London & I will commute to work

• I will not claim for a ‘second home’

• I will work full-time as your MP

What I Stand For

Here’s a summary of my main campaign themes and how I’ve tried to fulfil them over the last 12 months:

I have four campaign themes which dominate my political philosophy:

Speaking up for Ordinary People

• I have spoken out against the plans for the Key Site development in Godalming and fought for affordable housing on the site.
• I have used my position to publicise the plight of Dan Eley, a young man from Godalming who used to work with street children in South America but suffered a broken neck and was left paralyzed, and stuck in Colombia. The Lib Dems put out 14,000 leaflets which publicised Dan’s situation.
• I have been outspoken in respect of the affairs of the standing MP Jeremy Hunt. Hunt has suffered the embarrassment of having to repay over £12,500 of his MP’s expenses claims, after I raised questions at a public meeting in May 2009.

Seeking a Fair Deal for the Vulnerable

• I strongly support the Royal British Legion’s Campaign for better care for returning veterans, having worked with army veterans through the YMCA.
• I am supporting the Act for Justice group in Haslemere, campaigning against human trafficking.

Campaigning for a Sustainable Community

• I chaired the successful campaign to save Farnham’s Water Meadows
• I am now fighting the proposals to double the size of Badshot Lea village
• I raised strong objections to the TAG flights proposal which involved the expansion of Farnborough Airport

Investing in our Children and Teenagers

• Seeking to help and empower young people is key to my agenda, as I have worked with them for many years in my role as a CEO of the YMCA.
• I strongly support the Lib Dems’ plan to phase out University Tuition fees. It’s too late for my own children, but I don’t want to see generations of young people saddled with huge debts just as they start out in life.

Sick of politics? Let me briefly say why I think it matters for Farnham Godalming and Haslemere

Vince Cable wrote to the voters of South West Surrey – his letter is reproduced below my YouTube video

Vince Cable kindly wrote this letter urging voters in South West Surrey to support me on Thursday:

Dear Elector

This election is not decided. The British people have a real decision to make at the polls and, for the first time in a long time, you have real power to make a change that goes beyond the choice between two bickering parties. Most importantly it is a choice about how to ensure economic recovery that is sustainable.

The MPs’ expenses scandal has been a disaster for UK politics. But by exposing those with their snouts in the trough, it empowers the public to make a choice. It creates a wake-up call about the frailty of the present voting system, where MPs believe that have a job for life and that they can ’milk the system’ and get away with it.

I have always argued that we need to go further than reforming MPs’ expenses; we need to elect MPs totally committed to wholesale reform. Your Liberal Democrat candidate Mike Simpson will be a strong voice in Parliament. He is a man committed to challenging the political establishment and he has all the right credentials for such a role.

The opinion polls suggest that people are rightly unhappy with the Labour Government yet have no real confidence in George Osborne and the Tories. The choice presented to the electorate is to lurch from incompetence to inexperience. I think you deserve more. To get the economy back on track requires the best minds, working effectively together. It requires fair taxes and common sense that you can trust. The Liberal Democrat Party is committed to sound economics. Our priority is to secure the long term financial viability and vitality of the economy.

Do not let anyone try to persuade you that a balanced parliament will be detrimental to our country. Far from it. A parliament balanced with a strong, Liberal Democratic presence will result in a House of Commons composed of true representatives of the electorate and sound, sensible policies brought about by discussions and consensus and not by political dogma.

Vote for your Liberal Democrat candidate Mike Simpson, and help create a government capable of rebuilding our economy and our political system.

Yours sincerely

Vince Cable

Cameron Fails to Close the Deal – Clegg and Lib Dems still close behind with just 3 days to go! GE2010

The opinion polls in tomorrow’s papers (Sun and Guardian) show that Cameron has failed to win the trust of the British electorate. The Conservative party are supposed to be the main opposition to Labour and yet even with the banking crisis, the MPs’ expenses scandal and the spiralling government debt, the Tories have failed to close the deal with the electorate.

Nick Clegg and the Lib Dems have proved to be credible, likeable and respected. Let’s hope that the voters will not have last minute nerves about putting their x where their heart lies.

The figures are:

YouGov poll for the Sun: CON 34%(-1) LAB 28% (+1) LDEM 29% (+1). No significant change from yesterday.

ICM poll in the Guardian: CON 33%(-3), LAB 28%(-1), LDEM 28%(+1).