Best Of

We must stop being in hock only to the bond markets.

No one voted for the bond markets.

https://x.com/ZackPolanski/status/2060784820058235342

They pretty much did vote for them, when they voted in Governments who spent more than they took in tax.

Indeed.

Consistently run a budget surplus and there's little the bond markets can or will do.

Yes.
Any ideas how to do that and be re elected?

Seriously?
Go in, day 1, do it. Take an axe to spending left right and centre. In particular, axe some whole programs, rather than trying to trim everything.

Welfare, pensions etc goes in the blender, comes out cheaper and less wide ranging.

Bin most of the MOD, sack all the procurement staff, buy standard kit wherever possible. It's apparent we've no meaningful capability left anyway, so why are we wasting all the cash?

Same time, bonfire of regulation, and get the entire tax code down to 4 sides of A4 at 11 point text. Simple, straightforward taxation. Tax consumption rather than employment as far as possible.

Explain that it's going to be painful, that the payoff won't be instant, but it will all be worth it.

Grit your teeth and get on with it for 4 years, hopefully without too many riots. With any luck, by then your deregulation and tax simplification will start to get the economy motoring, and your fiscal position is improving substantially. Use some of your accumulated savings to pay for tax cuts as you approach the GE.

Also - be straight and level with people about what you're doing and why. Avoid scandals, drop any misbehaving MPs instantly. Ensure no one has a just cause against you, other than a dislike of your actual policies.

Do all that, and you'll be hitting Starmer levels of popularity in years 2-3, but should bounce back magnificently as the payoff starts to occur.

Serious cuts to welfare are guaranteed to tank the economy because every penny of that gets spent on consumption. That coupled with a rapid shift to consumption taxes would cause a depression-level recession.

Wealth and property tax otoh would have little effect on consumption whilst providing an opportunity to cut the deficit and eventually reduce debt.

Level the playing field on income tax / NI so that earned income is not taxed at higher rates than investment/pension income.

Much data on the Loser here:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/map-shows-states-where-trump-s-approval-rating-has-crashed-most/ar-AA24qgA7?ocid=winp1taskbar&cvid=fa870dbabe884f9be47aee9413538622&ei=12

Key Points
Net approval has declined in every state since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
The steepest drops are in Republican-leaning states, not just Democratic strongholds.
Several battlegrounds, including Florida, Ohio and Nevada, have shifted into net disapproval.
Early pro‑Trump advantages have narrowed sharply, even in his strongest states.
The political map still resembles the partisan divide, but with weaker margins across the board.

It is not obvious -- at least to me -- how he can stop, or even slow, the decline in his support.

Kemi is lowering standards, ferfuxake, what a terrible idea.

Builders as Tory MPs? I mean no wonder she keeps on getting mullered in elections.

Badenoch: I want teachers and builders to become Tory MPs

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/30/badenoch-want-teachers-builders-future-tory-mps/

She is right and good on her

The full context

Leader of the British Conservative Party Kemi Badenoch speaks to the media outside Westminster Town Hall after winning the Westminster Council from the ruling Labour Party at the local elections, in London, Britain, 08 May 2026

Kemi Badenoch vowed to ‘reverse the culture that has turned legislators into social workers’

Kemi Badenoch has pledged that the next generation of Conservative MPs will “focus on the big decisions” instead of acting as glorified social workers.

The Tory leader also promised that parliamentary business would not be allowed to overwhelm the busy schedules of the professionals she is seeking to attract to the party.

“Britain needs serious people to steer us through serious times,” she said, and believed people working as teachers, engineers, electricians and builders should consider entering political life.

Writing for The Telegraph, she called the current Labour Government the most economically illiterate and the most unserious the country has ever had.

Under her watch there's not going to be another generation of Tory MPs.

In your opinion-other opinions are available

Not my opinion, just have a look at the recent elections.

She says this 'the current Labour Government the most economically illiterate and the most unserious the country has ever had' so why are the Tories going backwards in every election fought under her watch, the Tories should be making net gains.

Kemi is lowering standards, ferfuxake, what a terrible idea.

Builders as Tory MPs? I mean no wonder she keeps on getting mullered in elections.

Badenoch: I want teachers and builders to become Tory MPs

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/30/badenoch-want-teachers-builders-future-tory-mps/

She is right and good on her

The full context

Leader of the British Conservative Party Kemi Badenoch speaks to the media outside Westminster Town Hall after winning the Westminster Council from the ruling Labour Party at the local elections, in London, Britain, 08 May 2026

Kemi Badenoch vowed to ‘reverse the culture that has turned legislators into social workers’

Kemi Badenoch has pledged that the next generation of Conservative MPs will “focus on the big decisions” instead of acting as glorified social workers.

The Tory leader also promised that parliamentary business would not be allowed to overwhelm the busy schedules of the professionals she is seeking to attract to the party.

“Britain needs serious people to steer us through serious times,” she said, and believed people working as teachers, engineers, electricians and builders should consider entering political life.

Writing for The Telegraph, she called the current Labour Government the most economically illiterate and the most unserious the country has ever had.

Under her watch there's not going to be another generation of Tory MPs.

Who could have predicted nationalisation would be utter shite.

Rail services slashed after Thameslink nationalised

Britain’s biggest train operator announced the cuts hours before being taken into state ownership

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/30/thameslink-greenwich-nationalisation-rail-heidi-alexander/

BEFORE being taken into State ownership...

But ministers have asked train companies to reduce their services this summer in an effort to save money, and GTR will cut dozens of daily services from its schedules between July 18 and the end of August.

So matching supply with demand during the summer holidays.

It almost sounds like the market in action.

Nope.

A dozen trains per day will be scrapped from Thameslink’s Greenwich line services alone, according to internal briefing notes for staff seen by The Telegraph, and Greenwich council has urged ministers to reconsider cuts which fall at the height of the tourist season.

Calum O’Byrne Mulligan*, the cabinet member for climate action, sustainability and transport, said: “A reliable and regular rail service is vital for residents right across Greenwich, and so any reduction in services – even if just for a period of time – through any part of our borough would be very disappointing.”

He told the local Greenwich Wire news website: “I did not receive a formal notification of the timetable changes, and we have sought clarification from Thameslink, urging them to reconsider any potential timetable changes during the school holidays and busiest tourism season.”

*He's a Labour councillor

Greenwich will still have three trains to London each hour.

I don't know how "the tourists" get to Greenwich.

The other options are the DLR or the Thames Clippers riverboat service.

I would imagine most tourists use the DLR. I used to go to Greenwich when I lived in London, the station is quite a walk from the touristy bits. There are also buses, but the traffic can be appalling

12 days to the World Cup.
Can anyone ever recall less excitement?

Reasons? Possibles:

It's in the USA so the Trump problem applies. He will barge in. We don't trust or admire the USA currently. Some who always go will stay away.
The sense that it's a rip off for those who go.
The USA hasn't got any interest in football
The time difference problem.
The English game is so dominated by foreign stars that the England squad don't feel like familiar superstars.
Far too many teams in the finals (48). In 1966 there were 16. So far too many obscure games. Too much, too long, diluted quality.
Cape Verde are there and Italy are not.
According to the rankings England are the 4th best in the world, which suggests that this isn't going to be a feast of genius, as we are mostly unwatchable.
You can watch football on telly if you are a fan more or less 365 days a year. It isn't special.

Football was more exciting when you went with your Dad at 3pm on a Saturday to watch your local team, with local men playing in the team.

I went with our next door neighbour to St Andrews. So it really wasn't.

Once you've been to St Andrews as a kid you are a blue nose.

No other ground in Midlands comes remotely close for atmosphere...

Kemi is lowering standards, ferfuxake, what a terrible idea.

Builders as Tory MPs? I mean no wonder she keeps on getting mullered in elections.

Badenoch: I want teachers and builders to become Tory MPs

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/30/badenoch-want-teachers-builders-future-tory-mps/

She is right and good on her

The full context

Leader of the British Conservative Party Kemi Badenoch speaks to the media outside Westminster Town Hall after winning the Westminster Council from the ruling Labour Party at the local elections, in London, Britain, 08 May 2026

Kemi Badenoch vowed to ‘reverse the culture that has turned legislators into social workers’

Kemi Badenoch has pledged that the next generation of Conservative MPs will “focus on the big decisions” instead of acting as glorified social workers.

The Tory leader also promised that parliamentary business would not be allowed to overwhelm the busy schedules of the professionals she is seeking to attract to the party.

“Britain needs serious people to steer us through serious times,” she said, and believed people working as teachers, engineers, electricians and builders should consider entering political life.

Writing for The Telegraph, she called the current Labour Government the most economically illiterate and the most unserious the country has ever had.

Under her watch there's not going to be another generation of Tory MPs.

It's not entirely her fault, in the 'normal' course of events the party would probably have had an entire parliamentary term to lick their wounds after a Labour landslide without that much pressure on their status as main opposition, but the situation facing them now is different and is genuinely existential, and she is not able to rise to that challenge - maybe no one could.

I agree with her words about the role of MPs and getting those types of people into politics, but she's still dependent on outside factors for the party to survive, let alone thrive, and that is not a comfortable position to be in.

Kemi is lowering standards, ferfuxake, what a terrible idea.

Builders as Tory MPs? I mean no wonder she keeps on getting mullered in elections.

Badenoch: I want teachers and builders to become Tory MPs

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/30/badenoch-want-teachers-builders-future-tory-mps/

I'm sure you're not 100% serious about the lowering of standards, but the widening of backgrounds would in general be a good thing. Not to fetishise the working and lower middle classes and assume they'd make better MPs (no reason they should), but doctors and lawyers are more than capable of being utter cretins (twitter has shown this many times), but they get a presumed level of positive quality even when (for lawyers at least) they are not liked or trusted. Whereas a builder might be accused of being sneaky if they are very obviously clever, as if that was a bad thing.

Indeed.

The best known story about Lord "Jack" Weatherill, former Speaker of the House of Commons, who has died aged 86, concerns a conversation he overheard in the members' toilets after the 1964 general election. A crusty old shire Tory was grumbling that he didn't know what the country was coming to; why, even his tailor had been elected. Weatherill, who had just succeeded a grand admiral as Conservative MP for Croydon North East, always carried a silver thimble in his pocket, a reminder of his family origins - as a tailor.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/may/08/guardianobituaries.obituaries

My problem with this policy is that it seems bigoted against middle class professionals.