GP Taylor: Call a spade a spade if you want my vote

When it was announced that we would not be having a five-year fixed Parliament and the country would be going to the polls yet again, I reeled in horror. Normal life would be interrupted, fake news would fill social media and the party machines would roll out their battalions. The television and print media would be doling out endless hours of rolling election news and the battle would begin.

It was wrong of Theresa May to announce an election, especially at a time when the country is still healing after the vote on Brexit. As an ardent Brexiteer, I have actually lost friends by voting to leave Europe. Somehow their liberal tolerances would not stretch to me not being a sheep. I was actually trolled by people I know well and respected. Such is the bitterness of politics.

The trouble with elections is that politicians always want to turn it into a fight. Political parties have an inability to just tell the public the facts of what they stand for and what policies they have.

When they do bring out a manifesto I seldom believe what they say anyway. Hardly ever do they stick to what they offer. If they were supermarkets they would be prosecuted under the Trade Descriptions Act.

It is no wonder then that people have disengaged with British politics. Professional politicians do not inspire the confidence of the public with their antics in and out of Parliament. The tarnish of corruption and deceit is cast like a blanket over everything they say and do.

Elections bring out the worst possible behaviour in them. It would be good, if for a change they could use the next few weeks to behave differently. Would it be too much to ask for politicians of all parties to be honest?

Recently I listened to a politician being interviewed on the radio. Reasonable questions were put to her, but each time they were avoided. Instead, she trotted out the party line as if it were a mantra. At one point the interviewer laughed to himself, such was her avoidance of what he was asking.

Why can’t politicians just answer the question? It isn’t the most difficult thing in the world to do. Yes, or no would suffice. Honesty would be so refreshing. I can swallow even the hardest news if it is given honestly. Spin has been the death knell of politics in this country and the British people are sick of it.

I think I speak for many ordinary people when I say that I no longer believe what I am being fed by some media outlets and certainly not anything said by a politician. I find myself constantly checking the facts and taking nothing at face value. This election comes at such a sensitive time that it is one of the most important ones in British history.

Finally, we have the opportunity to be free from the fetters of European control. It is a Brexit election and will dictate the terms of our divorce from the EU. It is important therefore that we are given true and honest facts delivered in a reasonable and rational way without spin.

There is no longer any place for the lies and hyperbole spewed out by Project Fear.

Those who search for our votes should not be allowed to limit the debate. No subject should be pushed off the table. No one is asking the question about the rise in radical Islam and what can be done to stop jihad by stealth. I was shocked last week when the BBC referring to the tragic death of a police officer said he had been shot by a Belgian gunman. There was no mention of Islam or terrorism.

It is that sort of attitude that infects our political system. Everyone is afraid to call a spade a spade. Now is not the time for the politics of political correctness. We need to have open and honest debate about sensitive subjects without the blanket use of the race card.

Politicians of all parties need to engage with voters in a professional manner, something which is lacking in our political system. Their tone and manner needs to be measured and open.

This election is so critical for our country that politicians of all parties have to set aside their usual antics. This is not a time for alternative facts and stretched truths. I urge those seeking election to behave like adults and not like children in a playground on a windy day.