Above, Alfred Hitchcock director of the 1954 classic, Dial M for Murder starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly and Robert Cummings.
Over the course of this General Election campaign that now (mercifully) draws to a close, you, Dear Reader have been subjected to numerous speculations upon what will come after today.
The reason for oft repeated warnings has been to try and warn of the consequences.
There has been one set of speculations that you Dear Reader have been spared, until now.
The reason for the delay can be found in the plot of another British film noire this being,
has been The League of Gentlemen is a 1960 British crime drama directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jack Hawkins, Nigel Patrick, Roger Livesey, and Richard Attenborough. It is based on the 1958 novel The League of Gentlemen by John Boland and adapted by Bryan Forbes, who also starred in the film.
The plot of the film and of the novel is that a retired British Army Lt. Col. (played by Jack Hawkins) is down on his luck and happened to read a paperback novel. This was a fictional account of a robbery. The Lt. Col. Read the book and came to the conclusion that the crime was do-able and duly recruited a band of ex-serviceman to carry it out. The film was let down by an intentional alteration to ensure their apprehension by the police. Unfortunately, the alternation was a very weak and unconvincing conclusion to an otherwise good crime drama.
It is with some concern that your Editor has published this article for fear that some in the Labour Party may be mad enough to try it!!!!!!!
The scenario is this:
It is the start of next week and Labour finds itself as the second largest party in the Commons behind the Tories, and without any or all but a couple of Scottish seats. Cameron has resigned as Prime Minister having failed to secure a majority forming coalition. Miliband goes to the Palace, kisses the hand and returns to 10 Downing Street as Prime Minster.
Miliband makes no deals with any party but puts a Queens Speech before the Commons and challenges the SNP and the Lib Dems to vote it down. It is Labour’s manifesto with two proposals:
1. Removal of Trident from Scotland.
2. A proposal to have a referendum on introducing PROPER Proportional Representation to the Commons.
Following the passing of the Gracious Speech, Miliband has the protection of the Fix Term Parliaments Act (a violation of democracy nearly as bad as the European Communities Act 1972). Miliband them proceeds to attempt to implement Labour’s BIG SPENDING programme of government as if it had a majority.
There is one problem with this plan. Allow your Editor to give an analogy. In 2013, your Editor had a very serious financial problem. A solution had to be found. Doing nothing was not an option. Your Editor had formed two plans. There was Plan A and there was Plan B.
Of Plan A first: Go out of house. Walk up to main road at top of street. Cross main road. Go into convenience store. Buy Lottery ticket. Win Lottery jackpot.
You can I think Dear Reader see the flaw in Plan A!
Of Plan B: sell house for as much as I could get. Invest as much as possible in high paying but sound dividend stocks to increase income. Buy much smaller and cheaper property elsewhere.
Plan A was not attempted. Plan B was implemented and worked.
The Editor would counsel any Labour politician NOT to attempt to try and implement what can only be called Plan M (M for Mayhem) as it will not work and the instability will rob the country of its credit rating and cripple the economy with sky high interest rates on the debt.
NB: If the country had no Sovereign Debt problem, then the plan would work. But the country has a Sovereign Debt problem – a big one – and therefore the plan won’t work!
Your Editor must ask this question: Surely to Goodness Edward the Unfortunate could not be so stupid as to attempt this??? Could he???
If he does then we can already announce what the title of the article commenting on it will be: It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World!!!!!!!