Thursday 7th May 2015 10pm

It can’t be true. Exit Poll shows Conservative will have most seats…by a long shot! Just a few hours ago I was saying the exit polls are always right. Now I don’t want them to be….although, secretly, I know they are and cannot bear to think about the consequences. I’ll still stay up to watch the results come in; it can ‘only get better’!

Friday 8th May 2015

7am. OMG…it got worse…not better. Conservatives are due to have a MAJORITY…yes, a MAJORITY!!! What are we going to do? What have people done? Do they realise what they’ve done? They will when they take away peoples’ child benefit, withdraw from Europe, increase University fees, etc., etc., etc. Well that’s democracy for you! All very well but when it does not produce the result I want I start to wonder whether we’ve got it quite right.

I blame everyone; the voters for not voting Labour , Nicola Sturgeon  for backing Ed into a corner rather than just being more political and keeping quiet, the Conservative campaign for encouraging fear, Nick Park (whoever he is) for creating Wallace, the pollsters for getting their stats wrong, Nick Clegg for….being Nick Clegg!!!

My 14 year old daughter has become politically interested. Continuous questions about how many seats each party has got and what it would mean for the country. I am proud of her knowledge and interest…she probably knows more than the 33% of the country who didn’t bother to vote. She asks me to message her during the day and keep her updated on progress.

9am Time to do something enjoyable and try and forget about what is happening…went off for big, high-fat, fry-up with hubby. Farage did not get his seat…the best news I’ve had so far…I text friends and family as I need to send some good news to them.

Home in time to see the leader resignation speeches. Have messaged daughter to let her know; she says she already knows as she is sitting in her geography lesson also watching the continuous media coverage. Love Clegg’s speech. Do not much love Miliband’s speech…there is more to winning that just fighting on! We need to understand why we didn’t get enough votes, what we need to do, what we need to change, we need to listen, we need to give people a reason to vote for Labour.

I now feel more numb and dumbfounded!

David Cameron’s acceptance speech makes me cringe…One Nation…my a**. He sounds conciliatory but we know it was his ‘sweetest success’…a real ‘career defining’ moment. He appoints his top team…no change…continuity was his pledge. Oh, aren’t we all so lucky!

Fortunately we’re due for dinner at some friends’ house tonight. It will provide a chance to really rant, express my views and offload my anger…they are all Labour supporters. Although, having now returned home, I wonder whether one of them may be a ‘shy Tory’ or a ‘quiet Lib Dem supporter’ …he was unusually quiet and didn’t seem to support my points of view!!! So some people really did vote Tory….I didn’t really want to believe it.

Saturday 9th May

I wake up sad….with a bit of a sore head…and very tired.  Two late nights is too much for me. The papers are full of the election. I can’t bring myself to read the detailed seat by seat results…I love looking at the stats but I fear it will be too upsetting, reinforcing the size of the losses across the country…except in Hove and London.

They are really putting the boot into Ed…and Nick; I must stop buying The Telegraph on a Saturday! But I love their magazine, the weekend section, the review…hubbie likes the sport section…and perversely, I enjoy reading the articles written from a different perspective. It’s infuriating at times, sometimes funny, usually informative, – always worrying!

And it’s not just the Tory press who are having a field day…labour supporters seem to be appearing from everywhere with harsh words about Ed, our policies and the campaign. However, I am impressed by Tristram Hunt’s words of wisdom…they are sensible, loyal, measured….I’m sure he’s going to go for the leadership.

I feel for Ed. I voted for him as Leader; I wanted a non-Blairite, I wanted someone more to the left, I wanted someone who would think of others before himself, I thought his brother was too smarmy! Was I wrong? I am not sure? I’m puzzled. I am disappointed with him; why did he wait to get Russell Brand to support him AFTER the date to register to vote had gone?

Where was the tough opposition in the last 4 and half years? Why did we not listen to the voter? Why were we unable to put our message across?

Can’t even be bothered to get out of my pyjamas but do so in order to go for an early Thai supper before settling down to watch Mockingjay Part 1. It’s a good film, not as good as the first ones, but my mind is wondering…I keep thinking about the reality of a Conservative majority…I keep nodding off!

Sunday 10th May

What joy…reading the papers and watching political programmes…hoping they support my point of view, seeking out alternative analysis and getting even more irritated and worried about the future of the country…is no one else worried?

A rare opportunity to watch The Andrew Marr Show….Mass will have to be missed this week. And it was well worth it. Mandleson was as anti-Ed as ever; does he not realise we can learn from the past but we cannot go ‘back to Blair’? Blair moved on to earn millions of pounds and left us to pick up the anger over the invasion of Iraq. Chuka Umanna was slick! He is charming, intelligent, answers questions well, dresses well, handsome….Andrew seems to warm to him and encourages him to say he is going to go for the leadership, but he declines with a small smile and twinkling eyes.

And now for Andrew No2 (aka Andrew Neil). He is actually my No1…the best political interviewer on TV. He has the job of interviewing Liz Kendall; who? you may ask. She is the Shadow Health Minister and, although I have heard of her I am sure many haven’t. I am worried about how she is going to perform, Andrew is no soft touch; but he is kind to her. In fact, she stumps him by asking him why he thinks he succeeds in life. His reply consists of being paid a lot of money by the BBC and living in London…well, he is a lucky boy! I feel he knows he has said the wrong thing and quickly shifts the focus back to Liz. She does better than I had thought but I don’t see her as a leader…but, I may be wrong…I will not write her off, just yet!

Friends over for supper this evening so keen to get their view on the election. We talk a little about it, but I think we are exhausted from it all and find talking about holidays, moving house, jobs, school, education, exams, children’s eating habits, good and bad music teachers much  more relaxing……ahhhhh back to normal, at least for one evening.

Monday 11th May

I can’t even get away from the election at my pilates lesson. A brief comment to a fellow pilates friend about how disappointed I was with the outcome of the election ended up in a full conversation with another fellow pilates attendee whom I had never spoken to before. I think it’s not good that I have never spoken to this guy before (even though we have been attending the same pilates class every Monday for over a year. Anyway, he also blames Nicola Sturgeon for helping to allow the Cameron to create fear in the electorate. I agree with him but deep down I know there is more to our loss.

Post-pilates coffee chat leads to further post election analysis….what more is there to say? I walk home the long way and buy a pair of shoes on the way…I deserve a post election treat!

Cameron announces his cabinet. One notable absentee is Boris. Having used him to get his majority he is not even rewarded with a proper job…it’s a tough life. I’m pretty sure Boris is quite happy; keep a low profile and then…bang…when it all starts going wrong, he can truly say that he had not been part of the collective cabinet decision making. Clever?!

Cameron may call it ‘blue collar conservatism’ but actions speak louder than words.’  They announce they are going to do away with the Human Rights Act…it didn’t take them to show their true colours. It will be a disaster for people in this country but, as the meaning of it and reality of this is badly explained on TV, in the papers and on the radio, many will not truly understand what the impact will be until it’s too late. There must be better ways of helping people to make informed decisions…or do they not really care?

Andrew Pierce relishes in taking the p*** out of Labour’s loss with Kevin Maguire. For once, Kevin lets him have his moment of glory. We know it won’t last for long…at least it had better not!

Farage is not allowed to stand-down as leader. His party will not accept his resignation letter…really? I laugh out loud…this is a farce. Another politician you can’t trust.

Tuesday 12th May

Surprise Surprise. Chuka Umanna says he’s going to put his name forward for the Leader of the Labour Party. You could tell he was going to…it was obvious. I need to stop singing ‘Chaka Khan I Feel For You’ every time I say his name. It’s a great song but must stop singing the song in my head and dancing whenever I hear his name.

David Cameron allows the TV cameras into the Cabinet Meeting. He’s not as pumped up as he was in the election campaign but he waves his manifesto around telling his followers that they now the party of the working people; he may say it but I don’t think those working people on a zero hours contract and working for minimum pay would think he was on their side. Or do they? I begin to worry again.

Get a message from a friend who is a Conservative SPAD (special adviser). He’s back at his desk…happy for him and his family…..he is such a nice guy, not like the other Tories.

Wednesday 13th May

All Conservative ministers have been told they must repeat the phrase ‘One Nation’ 100 times a day within every sentence. Just heard Teresa May on Good Morning Britain and she repeated it so many times. I am already irritated by the phrase and we’re only 5 days into a Conservative MAJORITY. She is one to watch…fear that fast tracking her ‘extremist’, ‘anti-democratic’ plans could lead to erosion of freedom of speech and not make any of us safer….very worrying.

Andy Burnham has also thrown his hat in the ring to become Leader of the Labour Party. I really like him…an ex NHS manager, an Everton supporter, a nice guy…he was my second preference last time but I don’t think I’ll be voting for him this time; he’s been around too long (even though I definitely not ageist) and I think he is not the right person to inspire and lead Labour to our next victory. His announcement doesn’t even get a headline on Channel 4 news, they mention it 45 minutes into their schedule; well, they don’t think he’s going to be leader either. I like Channel 4 news!

However, we do have 4 months to choose a leader; I think it’s too long. I mean, what are we really going to do during that time? People will vote for the leader they want based on their personality, their values, their beliefs and …what they look like; it does not take 4 months to show us that! In the meantime, the Conservatives and SNP will fill the vacuum.

Better job figures announced…George Osborne is ecstatic. I know this is a good thing for many people, but still don’t believe the story they are trying to tell; many people who work are still on low pay and still can’t afford to pay their rent and bills and buy god food. Headline figures only tell you part of the picture.  Did these people really vote Tory or did they not care enough to vote?

Or why don’t we just let Prince Charles run the country? Evidence now shows he has views on many topics and is keen for the government to listen and implement his wishes. He is meant to be impartial; if he wants his views known he should write an article in a publicly available newspaper, not privately to Prime Ministers and ministers.

UKIP having problems….hooray! UKIP (Farage) wants Mr Carswell to take the taxpayers money he is entitled to to run his office, but he doesn’t want to; he says he doesn’t need 15 people working for him…quite right too! I respect him for that and for standing up against the ‘Farage Followers’ but I’m sure Nigel thinks he’s just being awkward as he is their only MP. This relationship is going to get interesting.

Thursday 14th May

Osborne’s travelled north to offer cities the opportunity to be part of the ‘Powerhouse’….it may work for Manchester, but not yet convinced it’s a model that can work for people living in less fortunate areas. People living in those cities need good jobs, good quality housing, good schools, good healthcare, good transport…is this really the best way of achieving this or is it just a gimmick?

Caught up with sisters tonight for a celebratory pre-birthday dinner. We are all Labour supporters but it clearly demonstrates how different each supporter can be. Labour supporters are not a homogenous group. The new leader and the party will have to have very wide appeal if my sisters’ views are anything to go by.

Other party’s leadership discussions continue…Farage getting flack from his Euro MEP and Mr Fallon pitches for those who are interested in music, poetry and art….all very well but he’ll need to offer more than that to get elected..or will he?

Glad to see Mark Carney, Bank of England Governor, acknowledging the big advantage the UK economy has from being able to access the European Market. Hopefully more people will start to outline the benefits of being in the EU so the voter will be making an informed choice when it comes to saying YES or NO.

Friday 15th May…Happy Birthday H

It’s interesting how the news that the welfare cap is having on people being evicted from their homes and out of their communities has come out a week after the election….did Shelter and the rest of them really not have this information last week? I think not! And it’s only going to get worse as the £12bn welfare cuts start to hit people.

And who is this new bod throwing their hat in the ring for labour leader? I do not know but have been told it is a woman….Mary Creagh, the shadow international development secretary. I know nothing about her! And at last….Tristram has come out of his hiding place to try and enter the ring, but he is still seeking more MPs to support him. I’m surprised he would have been the last to get picked for the team (I’m sure that wasn’t the case when they were picking sports teams at his independent school), but maybe he’s finding it difficult to get support….particularly amongst the trade union supporters; I wish he hadn’t crossed that picket line because otherwise I think he would have been a good leader. There you go! Your actions do come back to haunt you! And, oh yes, Yvette is also in the running. Haven’t seen or heard much from her yet, but I do think she should smile more and not look so serious all the time. I know politics is a serious issue, but she is definitely a glass half empty person rather than a glass half full person. Cheer up…it’s not that bad…well it is, but we must remain positive, we have to survive 5 more years.

It’s getting worse for Farage….’snarling, thin-skinned, aggressive’…..I always knew that was the case, but 14% of voters voted for him (well, his party), but I’m sure they were voting more for the one man band, rather than the party; do they really know what UKIP stands for?

What a lovely photo of David and Nicola having a little chat about how best to break up the Union…they look so good together! I bet the electorate didn’t think they were going to get this…deals being done between Tory and the SNP!

As I post this weeks’ diart I have just heard Chuka Umanna has withdrawn from the leadership race! OMG!!!!