[Hiddlebit]

The last Tory government left power with unemployment higher than they inherited, and it was under that lot that unemployment reached record heights: at the time I worked in a Jobcentre and it was painfully obvious to all of us that the figures were a huge underestimate. Every time they changed the way we counted unemployment (more than 20 times in 5 years) the figure went down for a month before creeping back up.

It could be argued that the parties set each other up to fail: you'll notice that when parties know they will win an election they go to the country within 4 years, when they know they'll lose they go the full 5. And of course every party makes decisions with an eye to the vote and staying in power, rather than what is right.

So go for the "benefit scroungers" worth maybe £5bn according to the latest (probably inflated) estimates, not for the tax dodgers worth far more - government estimate, £40bn, pundit estimate, over £70bn.

Ideologically all of the parties have lurched to the right. Since Cleggie became the leader of the LibDems the party has lurched so far to the right it's almost as Tory as the Tories.