Best Of

I apologise if this point has already been made, I haven't had time to read the thread yet, but this polling shows how little the general public understand about the world and position we are in.

It is not that the Tories and Labour are the same, they come from different places and have different priorities and ideologies. It is that THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE. Our government, of whatever stripe has extremely little room for manoeuvre. This was demonstrated to all but the very dimmest by Truss and her hapless Chancellor and yet Labour still managed to get elected after persuading people that "austerity was a choice". Even some on here, who are inevitably better informed and more engaged than most, seem to have believed it.

Well it wasn't and it isn't. Ask Rachel Reeves. And if the collection of crackpots known as Reform took over they would discover exactly the same. Unless and until our politics comes into alignment with that reality we face ever more disillusionment and disengagement.

How lomg before Reform also disappoints?

I suspect they will be pretty rubbish at running councils. Speaking of which, how would Farage resolve the bins in Brum? Maybe someone would like to ask him. Unless they have some ex-counsellors in their ranks - maybe defectors from the Tories? - they will be pretty clueless from day one.

The truth is that no party has the answers to our problems.

Hard, long-term decisions are required but if anyone attempted to be really honest with the electorate they would howl and whine because a substantial wedge of the electorate want everything to be excellent (healthcare, education, defence) but don't want to pay the price necessary (not personally at least). No party can square that circle so the voters lurch about latching on to the next snake-oil salesman.

Like it or not autocracies have the upper hand over democracies in this respect which is why I also expect China to win its battle with Trump.

I’ve been saying for a while. Democracy is dwindling - and it is probably doomed over time. A relatively brief experiment in the context of human history

There are multiple reasons for this. Just one is the greater ability of autocracies to make difficult long term decisions

Stop it. It is most unnerving when you make a point that is both controversial and correct for once. It really makes me wonder if I have got it wrong.

People don’t know what they’ve got, till it’s gone.

We have a marvellous ability, as a species, to foul our own nests.

If democracy is replaced by autocracy, what we’ll get is both less freedom and a worse standard of living.

Morning all. Things are better here today. Mrs C is recovering from her hospital trip; fell and took some of the skin off her shin. Lots of blood and general tissue damage, but she's all bandaged up now and she's walking as little as possible.

On topic, or at least one of those currently discussed when I look at my family, are they living better or worse than we were thirty (say) years ago. Eldest son, I would say yes, but he didn't make the commercial mistakes I did, so he's quite comfortably off, working part-time/semi retired although he's worried about his 'children' who aren't settled in either education or employment. Younger son, maybe; he is moving toward semi-retirement, although because of where he lives education of his children is expensive and it'll probably be ten years before his youngest is earning.
In other words they've got worries and problems as we did, but they're different.

They're not similar. Labour have raised taxes more and far more inclined to Statist solutions.

What they have done is take centre-right positions on defence and welfare spending, however - and more effectively than the Conservatives did - which is a sweet place to be electorally.

Conservative Governments have also raised taxes. They may not do it as overtly as Labour but you're not telling me the freezing of personal allowances is anything other than a tax rise for those dragged into the higher rate of tax. It was also a Conservative Government which raised VAT from 17.5% to 20%.

Labour rarely cut taxes though they have in the past.

The Conservatives often cut public spending but it's Labour who do it more brutally whether now or back under Healey in the mid 70s.

It's not a question of being two sides of the same coin or two cheeks of the same arse - it's the circumstances in which they find themselves and the responses they are able to put forward. If you are having issues with the public finances what are your options? Some argue for raising taxes and cutting spending, others argue for cutting taxes and spending to generate growth. It's not however an either/or or even a both/and.

At a fundamental level, it's about the kind of life and society we all want or are willing to pay for. It's also about some form of longer term vision for what the country could or should be in terms of what it provides for its citizens and the obligations placed on its citizens in return. I'd rather we'd spent 2016 discussing that than whether we should be in the European Union.

Yes, Conservatives raised taxes.

Labour have raised them much more.

The difference is that Conservatives will raise if they think they must, whereas Labour will raise as far as they can so they can achieve their social and public policy objectives.

Labour hasn't done that at all. Carrying the ming vase, they boxed themselves in by ruling out all of the obvious ways of raising significant funding, have raised a few extra dribs and drabs by tinkering, and as the money is proving inadequate, semi-broke their promise by going for employers' NI. But there's still nowhere enough resources to both tackle the mess the Tories left almost everywhere and pay a lot more for defence.

I filled up the car this morning. Diesel 135.9p, petrol 129.9p. Ridiculously and criminally cheap. Across in France it’s about 165-169 cents. A 10p hike in fuel duty would raise around 12 billion per year and bring pump prices back to where they were only a year or so ago.

Parade of political flunkies’: MPs critical as Sunak awards Michael Gove a peerage
Lib Dem deputy leader condemns ‘reward for failure’ as former PM elevates allies to Lords in resignation honours
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/apr/11/parade-of-political-flunkies-mps-critical-as-rishi-sunak-awards-michael-gove-a-peerage

I despise Gove but if we are to have a House of Lords which includes ex-politicians he clearly meets the criteria for it. He was a significant figure in government for 13 years and for good or ill (principally ill, it has to be said) made major changes that will probably reverberate through politics for decades.

That is one very good argument for getting rid of the Lords, but until that happens I can't see how anyone can say he shouldn't be considered for a peerage.

In private discussions hours before China announced new retaliatory tariffs, the Trump administration warned Chinese officials against such a move, according to a source familiar with the discussions.

The Chinese were also told – once again – that Chinese President Xi Jinping should request a call with US President Donald Trump.

Instead, US officials woke up to news of increased Chinese tariffs and no request for a leader level call. Xi also made comments that only dug him in further.
https://x.com/rwang07/status/1910692647519346832

I have good connections in China. I get a lot of business from there.*

If what they are saying to me is true, not only are they not backing down, but they are determined to smash Trump for his behaviour which Xi takes as a personal insult.

If it weren't for the fact that the world economy will suffer as a result, as of course will my business, it would be very amusing to watch two fat superannuated fascists knock lumps off each other.

Trump however doesn't seem to realise just how vulnerable he is. If China sells all US bonds, the resulting turmoil will be such he will probably end up being assassinated.

And that is what my sources think Xi's planning...

*Yes, I dislike and distrust the government of China. I also take the view however that there could be worse ways of serving our planet than teaching accurate history, sound political philosophy and ethical theories to the sons and daughters of despots. It may, in its own small way, one day help to create a better world.

Very much confirms my impression.

I really don’t think Trump has a clue what he’s got into.

Europe should align with China who now seems a much more reliable trade partner . I never thought I’d be saying that !

Europe should certainly not align with China. We'd leave ourselves horribly exposed when they decide to forcibly reunify Taiwan with the mainland. Europe's big enough to stand on its own, and work with other countries as and when it is useful to do so.

There's a much better chance of the Americans getting over the Trump disaster than there is of China becoming democratic over the next decade.