Election speculation

For the past couple of months there has been speculation about when the next election will be held and whether it will be this autumn. Gordon Brown his and his spokemens’ comments show them having fun with all of us, political opponents, the media and commentators with their constant “will he, won’t he” speculation. Today’s Times reports that Brown will not use his keynote speech on Monday to announce an election while the BBC says The Labour Party is heading to Bournemouth for its annual conference amid speculation Gordon Brown is preparing to call a general election. All of this has made day to day planning in a busy family such as ours almost impossible. Will I be able to take my son down to his first day at University? Will I be able to watch my other son play in a key Rugby match? Can I take my daughter to a party? Can I join a great friend from University at his 50th birthday celebrations? No complaints from me because I knew the form when I first decided to put my name forward as a candidate and in Rugby our local planning for an election is well in hand, but from the perspective of organising daily life and playing an active role in a family, there’s something to be said for fixed term parliaments.