Last night, 2nd April 2015, saw the leaders of the UK’s seven main political parties go all out to convince the public that they were the one’s to run the country and with a two hour broadcast on ITV there was a whole lot to get your mind around. To make things a little clearer, we’ve stripped out all of the fat and waffle to boil things down to their bare bones by converting everything into 140 character Tweets for each of the parties. This will cover their opening remarks, their answers to questions on the economy, NHS, immigration and the future of Britain, and their closing statement, so buckle yourself in for a whistle stop tour of the 2015 election debate slug fest.
Introductions
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – Principles and values first, fair economy and real action on climate change
Nigel Farage, UKIP – They’re all the same! #stopimmigration
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – It’s going to be another hung parliament, so keep us in the middle to balance the books and stop deep cuts
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – We need independence, but if we can’t get that then give us the power to block bad policies #youcannevertakeourfreedom
David Cameron, Conservatives – We’re doing alright, so give us another chance #growingeconomy
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – Jobs and services have been cut to the bone, so give us the power to shout for Wales in a hung parliament #fromtherhondda
Ed Miliband, Labour – Britain succeeds when working people succeed. #nozerohourcontracts #raiseminimumwages #cutthedeficit #investinNHS #tuitionfeesdown
The economy
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – Things need to be balanced. Don’t cut too much, don’t spend too much and balance the books. More money for the NHS
David Cameron, Conservatives – Our plan’s already working and already balanced. We’ll save £1 in every £100 in spending to reduce budget deficit. £5bn from tax evasion
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – Slower progress to budget deficit reduction. Give the people a bail out and invest in communities
Nigel Farage, UKIP – £90bn budget deficit. National debt = £1.25 trillion. Cut £10bn foreign aid, save £10bn on EU, save £4bn on HS2. Save £4bn on Barnet formula
Ed Miliband, Labour – The Conservatives haven’t tackled the budget deficit, so give us a go. We’ll make cuts outside NHS and welfare, tax the rich and boost living standards
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – Stop austerity, raise taxes on multinational companies and the very rich and invest in essential services.
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – Modest spending increases, slower movement to reduce budget deficit and invest in infrastructure, skills and public services #handinglove
NHS
Nigel Farage, UKIP – #scrapesahh cut middle management and kick out the foreign AIDS sufferers to save the NHS, and probably the world
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – No parking charges in Scotland already. Remove privatisation, end austerity and invest in the NHS #progressivealliances #wewillbeyourally
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – No private profit, £6bn went to private profits in 2014
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – The NHS needs £8bn, Lib Dem party has a plan to find it. Rich to pay extra, balance books to invest further and more for mental health
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – More doctors for Welsh NHS, general taxation to fund investment #Farageshouldbeashamed
Ed Miliband, Labour – Mansion tax, hedge fund hit and money from tobacco companies to boost investments in the NHS. The Conservatives are failing the NHS
David Cameron, Conservatives – We’ve put more money into the NHS and we’ll do the same next year. Longer opening times for GP surgeries
Immigration
Ed Miliband, Labour – No benefits for the 1st 2 years & crack down on paying the minimum wage. We need to play our role in the world, but control immigration
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – It wasn’t immigrants that caused the economic crisis, it was bankers
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – Effective controls to prevent abuse, invest in growth and clamp down on minimum wage offenders. EU workers = net contributors to UK economy
David Cameron, Conservatives – Hard working immigration is positive. Immigration too high and want to see it come down. Tougher stance on benefits + referendum
Nigel Farage, UKIP – They’re all the same and they can’t do anything as a part of the EU. UKIP would start Australian-style points systems and pull out of EU
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – There’s good immigration and bad immigration. Checks and controls are needed, so Britain is open, but not open to abuse
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – We celebrate the free movement of people, but would support a referendum
The future for young people
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – Tuition fee subsidies in Wales for students attending Welsh universities. End austerity to win free tuition fees for students in Wales
Ed Miliband, Labour – Cut tuition fee from £9,000 to £6,000, ban exploitation of zero hours contracts, build 200,000 homes by 2020, fair deal in private renting
David Cameron, Conservative – We’ve created 2 million jobs and looking to create more next year. No caps on University placement. Starter homes scheme
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – General progressive taxation should pay for education (no tuition fees). Minimum wage of £10 per hour by 2020
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – We’ve already done so much, and we’ll do more. We pay £46bn to pay off interest on national debt, so balancing the deficit is crucial
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – Good record in Scotland on affordable homes, apprenticeships and Universities free of tuition fees
Nigel Farage, UKIP – Bring back grammar schools and brown field building revolution for houses
Closing statement
Nicola Sturgeon, SNP – Vote for us and vote for something different. No more austerity, no more nuclear weapons spending. A louder voice for Scotland and change
Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats – Keep things in the middle ground. Balance borrowing, balanced cuts
Ed Miliband, Labour – Build a Britain that puts people first, not just the big bonus earning bankers
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru – No more austerity, good investment in public services, devolution and better deal for Wales #diolchynfawr
Natalie Bennett, Green Party – Don’t vote for the lesser of two evils. We need more MPs like Caroline Green in parliament. We need a peaceful revolution
Nigel Farage, UKIP – They’re all the same!
David Cameron, Conservative – It’s all about the economy and we’re the best Captain of the ship that holds the coffers. Stick to the plan that’s working
