El_P,
Before pointing out any other holes in your argument (of which there are many - but I probably won't be bothered to address them as a bottle of red is calling...) I would ask on what basis "joe soap could kick them out early"?
To the best of my knowledge, prior to this change there were only two routes to a general election, neither of which was under the control of "joe soap".
1) The government loses a vote of no confidence, which subsequently results in a general election. This is likely to occur with minority governments, those with small majorities, or occasions when MPs within the government consider an issue so important that they rebel to bring the government down. In no way is this instigated by Joe Soap.
2) The government of the day elects to call a general election, anywhen within its 5 year term of office.
Point 2 allowed the government of the day to call an election at a time when their standing with the public was high, thus giving them the advantage in terms of being re-elected. Indeed, Gordon Brown was urged to call a general election not long after his term as PM had started, when his ratings, and his party, were high. However, as a non "risk taker" he elected to wait, with the subsequent result that saw his party lose..
While I'm not a strong advocate of the coalition government, I hardly see fixed terms for governments as a major issue. Every party now knows exactly when the next election will be, and can plan their strategy, funding, etc, accordingly. Going from a system slanted in favor of the sitting government to one fairer for all is hardly the mark of a devious administration.
As for cuts to the public sector, wake up and smell the roses, watch the headlines in the next few weeks as the situation in Greece unfolds, the Euro potentially collapses, unemployment in Spain reaches 25%, banks go under etc....
These are not normal times, or headlines we can ignore just because we aren't in the Euro. We are potentially in for 10 years of recession, perhaps even depression, and you want our government to continue spending as though nothing were happening....
Labour were planning on making cuts too, and were starting to admit it just before the election. Some people do realize the size of the issues involved, but then NIMBYish creeps in. "Yes, we need to make cuts, but not in police/military/NHS/Civil Service...(delete as required)" is their sort of approach!