A hung or balanced parliament would have to collaborate – like business does

There’s been a lot of fear spread that a balanced/hung parliament will wreck Britain. Today, as the nation goes to the polls, I can’t help but wonder why is it politicians fear collaboration? Across the business world collaboration is the key to success. In manufacturing, rival organisations develop products together, pooling their resources and IP and then fighting it out on brand value. CIOs are constantly being asked to improve the collaborative abilities of their organisations so that different departments in different regions, as well as clients and suppliers can share ideas and create a better product. For a long time we’ve all known that business is more important than government will ever be. And the more you think of collaboration, and the more you listen to Cameron and Brown, the more you realise it is a lot more mature as well. Why do these expenses swindlers want to live in divided camps, sitting facing each other booing and waving papers like some demented scene from a surreal 60s TV show? Why not work together to thrash out something that works for all involved? If the TV debates have proved one thing, it is that politics is now about communication. Two of the three were great communicators. Little to no policy has been discussed during this election and the truth is there is hardly any difference on policy between the major parties. So collaboration should be easier today than ever before.  So surely a balanced/hung parliament is the best option. It works in Scotland on this island and across our continent of Europe. All three parties have some good ideas and policy. I for one hope we do wake up tomorrow to a balanced parliament with good representation from the Green party, the Scottish and Welsh national parties as well as the three big players. Successive governments since 1979 have had massive majorities and it has not generated the best out of politics or politicians. The expenses scandal exposed by the Telegraphnewspaper proved that. Looking back at the governments of Blair, Major and Thatcher, I can’t help wondering if they would have been better governments if their majorities had been smaller and they had been forced to think through issues on a wider platform than their own political ideologies. The future may hang in the balance.