P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Aiui, there are two separate things: delays to freight traffic, owing mainly to Brexit; and queues of passengers, which are due mainly to reduced capacity (see P&O) and only partly to increased bureaucracy (the C- and B-words) and having to drive past the M20 lorry park.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying to us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
I said kicking out the Tories is a *start*. You can;t begin to fix the problem when the government deny there is a problem.
You cannot solve a problem if you cannot express a viable alternative
Shortage of chips weighing on manufacturing, especially cars once again. We urgently need the new capacity for chips to come online and onshore.
Building domestic capacity, should we choose to do so, would take rather a long time. 'Urgent' is probably the wrong term for what would need to be a strategic plan - if would require large government incentives over at least a decade to get manufacturers to commit to the UK. Building a domestic industry from scratch would take even longer.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
Interesting post and we do need more debate on the alternatives, not just kick the tories out mantra
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
I said kicking out the Tories is a *start*. You can;t begin to fix the problem when the government deny there is a problem.
You cannot solve a problem if you cannot express a viable alternative
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
Why are you assuming they are friends? Wouldn’t an enemy lie to the press to make their attack more damaging?
I've quoted the Telegraph headline. Surely you are not doubting the veracity of the newspaper that employed no less a person than our own dear Prime Minister?
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
Interesting post and we do need more debate on the alternatives, not just kick the tories out mantra
Although TBF BigG I do agree with @RochdalePioneers that we need that too. Just for different reasons.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Really? How would you get from your island in PNG to a Thailand A&E? Please tell. Or is your idea of 'off-grid' living being near a major A&E facility? Or would you be leeching off everyone else by demanding an emergency casevac?
I'm moving to an island in Thailand and they have excellent medical facilities there and throughout.
I guess you've never been by the sound of your ignorance.
UK co2 per capita is only slightly higher, and is falling much faster. Presumably you will be lecturing the Thais in the same tone deaf way when you arrive ?
That led me to look up international CO2 emissions per capita, and I'm baffled by one thing I found.
Can anyone explain why Montenegro is so high up on that list? Second to Qatar at 25 tons per capita - five times that of Britain and 50% higher than even the USA.
It doesn't have lots of industry. It's not afaik a big exporter of oil or gas. Its transport links are short. It's not even that rich.
Is the information wrong or is there something I'm missing?
I think a lot of the super rich park their yachts there. Could it be distorting numbers?
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
Wales doesn’t really matter to the tories.
We can all play that game: 'the countryside doesn't matter to Labour' is just as accurate.
Which actually poses another question: Labour's heartlands are probably the cities. What are the Conservative Party's 'heartlands' ?
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
There is another answer, which is to improve the productivity of the work that people do. Admittedly, easier in some jobs than others.
But that requires investment in people and machines, and in the UK there is easier money to be had buying and selling houses.
There was not really much difference between Macron and Le Pen's final polling and the first round results. If Macron has done slightly better it is because Pecresse did slightly worse with some of her supporters going to him.
Melenchon did do a but better, albeit still not enough to reach the runoff. He squeezed the Green Party candidate Jadot's vote in particular.
Macron is clear favourite to win the runoff now. Almost all the main eliminated candidates have now endorsed him, Melenchon, Pecresse and Jadot. The only exception is Zemmour who has endorsed Le Pen.
To win Le Pen will need to hope she at least splits the Melenchon vote equally with Macron with the rest abstaining. She would also hope to pick up some Pecresse voters
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
Interesting post and we do need more debate on the alternatives, not just kick the tories out mantra
Although TBF BigG I do agree with @RochdalePioneers that we need that too. Just for different reasons.
I am not arguing to keep this conservative government in power, but I do want to hear alternatives otherwise how can a judgement be made as to the best choice for the country ?
Since it is no longer permitted to mention the B word on broadcast television in the UK, henceforth Brexit will be known as the "Special Economic Operation in Europe"...
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
Wales doesn’t really matter to the tories.
We can all play that game: 'the countryside doesn't matter to Labour' is just as accurate.
Which actually poses another question: Labour's heartlands are probably the cities. What are the Conservative Party's 'heartlands' ?
Tax havens
Are you being Biblical there Malc? 'Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.'
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Why are you assuming they are friends? Wouldn’t an enemy lie to the press to make their attack more damaging?
Surely the fact that he clung on to a Green Card so long shows that this is essentially correct?
He will not be an MP in a max of five years as I have said before.
How strong are the Lib Dems in North Yorkshire?
The town where I’m planning to stay tonight, Banyuls-Sur-Mer, is twinned with Settle in North Yorkshire. I doubt my visit will give me any further insight into the popularity of the Lib Dems..
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Lie? No. Partial reporting? Yes. There has been a wilful refusal of much of the media to report the elephant in the room - the failure of GVMS on 30/03. Brexit is a taboo issue, can't be fixed, so instead lets give more legs to the other story about how P&O Ferries are bastards. That the UK Ports gave gave a political answer at the start of the crisis means they can repeat that as cover.
Can I pull you back to reality for a moment? You said there is a lack of capacity to move trucks. This is false. Ships are leaving half empty You said there has been poor weather. This is untrue. The weather has been fine and ships have been sailing without weather cancellations.
If you want to hide behind what you are being fed that is fine. But with respect to me not being a neutral observer I am reporting detailed facts. Evidenced facts. I am leaving it up to you to draw conclusions from it. But not reporting the failure of GVMS is not reporting the news correctly. Not highlighting the half-empty ships the same. The lack of French queues the same.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not sure there was actually much he *could* have done. But he should have been upfront rather than wasting money on meaningless gestures
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying to us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Without seeing Sky, I'd wager they are talking about passengers and not freight. It is Easter/Ramadan/Passover and the schools have just broken up, so lots of people are going on holiday.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
There is another answer, which is to improve the productivity of the work that people do. Admittedly, easier in some jobs than others.
But that requires investment in people and machines, and in the UK there is easier money to be had buying and selling houses.
Well said.
It also needs serious supply-side reforms, in particular deregulation, lower taxes and lower government spending, which neither party shows any wish for.
But if we want to be a high-wage, high productivity economy, it's what we need to do.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
It speaks to a deeply unhappy country which feels lost.
What I don’t understand is why governments don’t use their negotiating power more (eg on housing benefit) to reduce costs
That would involve taking on the rentier class, and the core operating principle of the current government is to make Britain a safe place for rentiers. It would go completely against their nature. You might as well ask why the Russian government doesn't try to be nice to its neighbours.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
It speaks to a deeply unhappy country which feels lost.
Can you name a country that doesn't feel that way at the moment? Serious question.
Why are you assuming they are friends? Wouldn’t an enemy lie to the press to make their attack more damaging?
Surely the fact that he clung on to a Green Card so long shows that this is essentially correct?
He will not be an MP in a max of five years as I have said before.
How strong are the Lib Dems in North Yorkshire?
The town where I’m planning to stay tonight, Banyuls-Sur-Mer, is twinned with Settle in North Yorkshire. I doubt my visit will give me any further insight into the popularity of the Lib Dems..
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
Wales doesn’t really matter to the tories.
We can all play that game: 'the countryside doesn't matter to Labour' is just as accurate.
Which actually poses another question: Labour's heartlands are probably the cities. What are the Conservative Party's 'heartlands' ?
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not sure there was actually much he *could* have done. But he should have been upfront rather than wasting money on meaningless gestures
He could have rated benefits by the 8% that is actual inflation figure now rather than the 3% back in September.
At least it would be a start.
Martin Lewis is predicting civil disorder and I believe he is correct.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
I'm not surprised RP Isn't a neutral observer. He's trying to import stuff into the UK through this chaos. Of course he isn't a neutral observer. He's a critical, and well-informed, one. I'd be surprised if he has any hair left.
You can be well informed, or neutral - both seems a stretch. I'm not sure Big_G is either on this.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
The French Corbyn.
More radical than Labour's Manifesto under Jezza.
There are of course parallels. Biggest party over 500k members, inspires young voters with a radical agenda.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
The French Corbyn.
More radical than Labour's Manifesto under Jezza.
There are of course parallels. Biggest party over 500k members, inspires young voters with a radical agenda.
Le Pen would give €100,000 to any young couple if they go on to have three children.
Does that include Muslim families or just reserved for white Christians ! I suppose if you have two children now why not pop out another baby to get your bonus !
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
It's not my party, I have never been a member of it.
I don't think that your description is accurate either. Sunak acknowledged the rise of inflation but also the problems we face on the back of the pandemic which has wreaked havoc on our public finances. I agree with the problem and accept that there are limits on what can be done but I think within those limits his priorities were wrong. Increasing NI instead of IT increasing the burden on earned money was wrong. Failing to prioritise the indexation of benefits was wrong. The loan scheme for heating bills is a ridiculous waste of money and time. But it is delusional to think for a moment there were easy choices. There aren't.
Didn't say you were a member. But you openly support them on here...
As for their recognition of an issue, their response is always "look here we are investing £x". Which always fails at recognise the depth of the issue. Or that £x is a drop in the ocean. Or that £x solves nothing without a change of direction.
Whilst you're right that the Pandemic did egregious damage to the economy, we can't use that as an excuse. Social Security payments were unlivable before, the NHS was experiencing on the limit crises before, the cost of living was absurd in so many areas before. The *structural* crisis - that the economy doesn't provide a viable income for so many people working flat out - has been around for ages.
The only way we are going to change this is to vote them out. If its not your party are you prepared to vote for whichever party is best positioned in your constituency to remove them from office?
This is a regular reminder that those on benefits in the UK are in the top 10% of incomes worldwide. We achieve this because we actually have a very successful economy that produces considerable quantities of wealth for distribution.
Your posts are, with respect, verging on the hysterical. There is room for both debate and action on whether incomes are distributed fairly. There is every right to criticise the priorities of this government or indeed any government. Things can indeed be better. But we are fortunate to live in a free, democratic, prosperous country where the rule of law is rigorously applied by an independent judiciary. You make good points which I often agree with but you do so in apocalyptic terms which are unnecessary.
Disingenuous David and old Tory trick. In the developed world out benefits are pathetic and thinking we are stupid enough to believe the cost of living In the poor countries you compare us to makes the benefits a windfall is beneath you. If you compare reality in is the very bottom of the pile. Just compare Irish pensions with UK as an example.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
I would also suggest he knows who his political masters are and knows when to put government spin on things. I wouldn't be surprised if he was lying by omission.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
It speaks to a deeply unhappy country which feels lost.
Can you name a country that doesn't feel that way at the moment? Serious question.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Lie? No. Partial reporting? Yes. There has been a wilful refusal of much of the media to report the elephant in the room - the failure of GVMS on 30/03. Brexit is a taboo issue, can't be fixed, so instead lets give more legs to the other story about how P&O Ferries are bastards. That the UK Ports gave gave a political answer at the start of the crisis means they can repeat that as cover.
Can I pull you back to reality for a moment? You said there is a lack of capacity to move trucks. This is false. Ships are leaving half empty You said there has been poor weather. This is untrue. The weather has been fine and ships have been sailing without weather cancellations.
If you want to hide behind what you are being fed that is fine. But with respect to me not being a neutral observer I am reporting detailed facts. Evidenced facts. I am leaving it up to you to draw conclusions from it. But not reporting the failure of GVMS is not reporting the news correctly. Not highlighting the half-empty ships the same. The lack of French queues the same.
Blaming it on P&O is the simple story. Operation Brock was implemented after P&O sacked all of its staff, while Brexit happened some time ago. Blaming P&O is just obvious.
Now, you may well be right in all that you say about the failure of GVMS, and of the Dover/Calais route being able to cope with current traffic levels without any P&O services, had it not been for Brexit. But that's a more complicated story. Our media struggles often to get simple stories right. What chance have they got with a more complicated one?
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Yes the environment is going to become the issue for left Parties.
However your earlier post calling them left wing nutters or whatever phrase you used is not what I would recommend to Macron
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
Interesting post and we do need more debate on the alternatives, not just kick the tories out mantra
Although TBF BigG I do agree with @RochdalePioneers that we need that too. Just for different reasons.
I am not arguing to keep this conservative government in power, but I do want to hear alternatives otherwise how can a judgement be made as to the best choice for the country ?
I don't disagree - "just kick out the Tories" is not a solution. But again, it is the start of a solution when this government continue the problem.
I do keep coming back to Thatcher though. However brutal some of her economic policies were there was a clear plan, a destination being aimed at, and substantial compared to today support in place for the people who were left behind on the journey.
We need another Thatcher - not the same economic solution as then, but the same analysis and clear "this is what we need to do" solution. A start is what kind of society do we want to be? One that forces working people to rely on handouts cannot be one the majority will accept if you strip policy away and ask about right and wrong. So we need to make work pay. Which means we need to make productivity rise. Which means we need to make people happy and productive at work. Which means we need to stop treating employees like automaton slave units. Which means we need to make companies work for their tax cuts. Etc etc etc.
It all starts with "who do we want to be". And that is why removing the Tories is the first step. Because you can't look at the problems and plan a solution when the PM is a crook and the Chancellor is tax efficient and the culture secretary wants war against trans people.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
Wales doesn’t really matter to the tories.
We can all play that game: 'the countryside doesn't matter to Labour' is just as accurate.
Which actually poses another question: Labour's heartlands are probably the cities. What are the Conservative Party's 'heartlands' ?
Private dining rooms in Mayfair where the non-dom donor class and Tory politicians form an ever-closer bond.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
I'm not surprised RP Isn't a neutral observer. He's trying to import stuff into the UK through this chaos. Of course he isn't a neutral observer. He's a critical, and well-informed, one. I'd be surprised if he has any hair left.
You can be well informed, or neutral - both seems a stretch. I'm not sure Big_G is either on this.
Worth noting that I am not a FBPE ultra. Leaving the EU has not caused this. What we chose to do after leaving the single market and customs union is what caused this. I advocate merely the removal of false trade barriers and the return to Thatcherite free trade.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
You know what you can do then… you’d like it there, lots of Russian spoken.
My experience of 3rd world medicine confirms the 5 minute wait. It is achieved by jumping a queue of about 350 because you're paying usd, and white
In Peru it took 5 minutes for a doctor speaking both English and Spanish to arrive at my bedside. Then again, I was in a 5* hotel in Midflores. They have an arrangement with the 24 hour clinic for the ultra rich next door. The doctor personally went to fill the prescription.
I have also been to the hospitals that the lower middle class in Peru use. Not quite that level of service. The free hospitals that do something for the poor are something again. My relatives are adamant that they should be avoided….
On Koh Samui, Thailand, my daughter was staggered by the niceness of the hospital (she had a minor injury and was getting checked out).
All gleaming modernity and empty, pretty much
I pointed to the numbers on the bill (all on insurance, but even so), and gave her some homework on the average wage on the island vs the cost. She likes to be socially aware and it was a good practical example of such things
Why are you assuming they are friends? Wouldn’t an enemy lie to the press to make their attack more damaging?
Surely the fact that he clung on to a Green Card so long shows that this is essentially correct?
He will not be an MP in a max of five years as I have said before.
How strong are the Lib Dems in North Yorkshire?
The town where I’m planning to stay tonight, Banyuls-Sur-Mer, is twinned with Settle in North Yorkshire. I doubt my visit will give me any further insight into the popularity of the Lib Dems..
Is that the southernmost town in France?
Very nearly.. Just beaten by Cerbère, which is basically a big railway station right on the border.
Apparently the area containing both is called La Côte Vermeille (the Vermillion Coast). Will the sand be red?
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying to us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
You are incredibly naive and blind to Tory failings G. Anyone basing reality on SKY news is a bridge customer in waiting.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
The French Corbyn.
Melenchon is a lot smarter than Corbyn.
He comes with a lot of similar baggage though as, like Corbyn, has spent decades going to any far left splinter group meeting that will have him and talking absolute shit to anybody who will listen so there is a rich back catalog for opponents to mine.
FI might be better off with a cleanskin in 2027. Maybe Panot.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
That people have to rely on food banks is something of which we should be ashamed. As is our treatment of refugees.
Would you be more ashamed if there were no food banks? Talk to food banks. With the best benefits system in the world, you would still have people who run out of money for food. There are people who have a drugs problem. A gambling problem. A drink problem. A complete inability to budget. Sometimes, they are mentally ill. Or of such low intelligence levels, they are very poorly equipped to survive outside a care system.
All of these people can benefit from food banks - and the very generous people who give to them and man them.
Personally, I'm happy that the number of food banks has risen, to help provide for those who would otherwise go without - for whatever reason. Society still provides. That is something to celebrate.
Society doesn't provide. Which is why working people have to rely on foodbanks. If society provided then working would pay the bills. The explosion in foodbank use demonstrates that this is not true.
How do we compare to other european countries? I believe foodbanks are common in Germany too.
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
Good morning
In Wales a pensioner lay on the pavement for 10 hours with a broken hip before an ambulance arrived
I’m afraid, BigG, it’s only once the situation deteriorates in the Tory heartlands, that any meaningful policy change will occur.
Wales doesn’t really matter to the tories.
We can all play that game: 'the countryside doesn't matter to Labour' is just as accurate.
Which actually poses another question: Labour's heartlands are probably the cities. What are the Conservative Party's 'heartlands' ?
Tax havens
Are you being Biblical there Malc? 'Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.'
It is for the Tories, they need storage after they have been to the laundry
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
It speaks to a deeply unhappy country which feels lost.
Can you name a country that doesn't feel that way at the moment? Serious question.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
If the French far-right had united, it would have got 30% (although a lot of Le Pen’s support may be because she’s currently pretending not to be far-right).
More generally, I reckon it’s important to wait until the Assembly elections before making any definitive judgements about where French politics and society is heading. My guess is that the Socialists, the Greens and the mainstream right will all do a lot better than their presidential candidates, while the Macron, Melenchon and Le Pen parties will all do worse.
The test for each of the latter three is to survive the departure of the current leader without imploding or fracturing.
Le Pen would give €100,000 to any young couple if they go on to have three children.
It's hard to imagine a politician making a similar offer here.
Cancelling the parents student loans on the birth of their third child is the nearest thing that might be possible - only benefits those earning enough to pay the student loans tax so avoids the tabloid outrage about giving money to families on social security. Though, a family on social security who received a £100,000 would have to spend most of it before they could start claiming again.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
OK. So on one hand we have the people doing the exports. And HMRC. And the actual ferry companies. And swathes of evidence submitted live by people there. And on the other hand we have Downing Street and bits of the media and apparently this chap.
We know for a fact that boats are leaving half empty. Photographic evidence backed up by the actual ferry company itself. So we know that a lack of ferry capacity is not the issue - if it was every last berth would be full of trucks.
We also know that GVMS failed on 30th March. As confirmed by HMRC. We know that manual checks have been implemented. As confirmed by HMRC and both confirmed on the ground by the whole industry and stacks of truckers posting their experience of the hell that is Brock Zero.
So again, we have actual evidence on one side, and an actual lie on the other. yes, the head of UK Ports is making public statements which are untrue - assuming that you are paraphrasing him accurately. Repeated lovingly by the BBC and other media outlets desperate for an excuse for what is going on that isn't Brexit.
As for your last line "you are hardly a neutral observer". I have skin in this game - I import stuff. Which is more than most people making "THESE ARE THE FACTS" statements can say. But again, the evidence of both the ferry companies and HMRC and the Port of Dover and the Truckers and the Logistics companies is there. Plain to see. Not up for discussion or debate because it is simply fact. There for anyone to see.
When you say "you are hardly a neutral observer" you are inviting me to set aside these facts and instead consider the words of someone denying them. That we can ignore the half empty trucks and ferry company evidence. That we can ignore GVMS and HMRC and the Port of Dover. We can ignore Google Maps and the driveby videos and all the tweets from all the drivers stuck for days. We can even ignore the weather and pretend that there has been poor weather when we know there hasn't.
Yes. I am hardly a neutral observer. Because facts matter. You are being lied to.
Sky have just reported from Dover saying the problems are down to P & O ferries loss of services, so maybe Sky are also lying us ?
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Lie? No. Partial reporting? Yes. There has been a wilful refusal of much of the media to report the elephant in the room - the failure of GVMS on 30/03. Brexit is a taboo issue, can't be fixed, so instead lets give more legs to the other story about how P&O Ferries are bastards. That the UK Ports gave gave a political answer at the start of the crisis means they can repeat that as cover.
Can I pull you back to reality for a moment? You said there is a lack of capacity to move trucks. This is false. Ships are leaving half empty You said there has been poor weather. This is untrue. The weather has been fine and ships have been sailing without weather cancellations.
If you want to hide behind what you are being fed that is fine. But with respect to me not being a neutral observer I am reporting detailed facts. Evidenced facts. I am leaving it up to you to draw conclusions from it. But not reporting the failure of GVMS is not reporting the news correctly. Not highlighting the half-empty ships the same. The lack of French queues the same.
Blaming it on P&O is the simple story. Operation Brock was implemented after P&O sacked all of its staff, while Brexit happened some time ago. Blaming P&O is just obvious.
Now, you may well be right in all that you say about the failure of GVMS, and of the Dover/Calais route being able to cope with current traffic levels without any P&O services, had it not been for Brexit. But that's a more complicated story. Our media struggles often to get simple stories right. What chance have they got with a more complicated one?
I understand all that. And the simple story is the failure of GVMS. It even has a nice narrative flow: Our Brexit deal requires customs paperwork as we are at our own request a 3rd country to the EU We process that paperwork through the Goods Vehicle Movement System This has broken HMRC told this government that the ageing customs computer (CHIEF) couldn't cope with the number of transactions post-Brexit as a 3rd country. 6 years later that same computer hasn't been replaced and has failed Because the computer is broken checks have to be done manually. This takes a long time which creates a backlog of trucks who cannot be processed through Dover or the Tunnel Despite the P&O debacle there is no shortage of space for the few trucks that make it out of the M20. Trucks are reported leaving half-empty, with the boss of DFDS placing the blame squarely on the inability to process paperwork manually HMRC say they are working on a fix and expect the computer to make a phased return to service this week The government say they have invested £lots in a new computer system which will come on line later this year
I's not that difficult. The lie is far harder: There is a lack of capacity - but ships are half full There is poor weather - but ships are sailing normally This impacts both sides - but no queues in France Its because its Easter - bit this started weeks ago Yeah we can't drive from our homes to our jobs because of gridlock but its definitely not caused by Brexit.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Melenchon is strongly Eurosceptic. So, I certainly hope he wins in 2027.
Melenchon said do not vote for Le Pen. Not a single vote.
He did not say vote for Macron. He did not say do all you can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not sure there was actually much he *could* have done. But he should have been upfront rather than wasting money on meaningless gestures
He could have rated benefits by the 8% that is actual inflation figure now rather than the 3% back in September.
At least it would be a start.
Martin Lewis is predicting civil disorder and I believe he is correct.
And that just pushes all of the cost of the exogenous factors (commodity price) onto the working group - because they are the ones that pay taxes. That would be wrong too in the way that an NI increase was wrong (although I believe that was more cheap politics than malevolent)
The fundamental mistake people are making is that government can’t protect us from everything that happens in the world
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Yes the environment is going to become the issue for left Parties.
However your earlier post calling them left wing nutters or whatever phrase you used is not what I would recommend to Macron
I can say it, he can’t! But clearly Melenchon represents a deeply frustrated, unhappy and largely younger portion of the electorate. That matters and my glib dismissal of them was wrong.
The Le Pen policy. Do you get the whole 100,000 Euros in one go or is it just an increase in child benefits which add up to that .
Child benefits are already very generous in France .
Also aiui parents can claim what we would call the income tax personal allowance for each child not using theirs, which unless they have a very well-remunerated paper round, is all of them. French income tax is levied on the household, not individuals as here.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Melenchon is strongly Eurosceptic. So, I certainly hope he wins in 2027.
Melenchon said do not vote for Le Pen. Not a single vote.
He did not say vote for Macron. He did not say do all you can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President.
Yes, the problem with his message is that it gives the option of abstention. I think he'll come under pressure to explicitly endorse Macron - hell, if the Communists and Trotskyists can do it, he should be able to.
In return, I think we should see his movement doing pretty well in the forthcoming Parliamentary (Assembly) elections. But not if he's let Le Pen through.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
It's not my party, I have never been a member of it.
I don't think that your description is accurate either. Sunak acknowledged the rise of inflation but also the problems we face on the back of the pandemic which has wreaked havoc on our public finances. I agree with the problem and accept that there are limits on what can be done but I think within those limits his priorities were wrong. Increasing NI instead of IT increasing the burden on earned money was wrong. Failing to prioritise the indexation of benefits was wrong. The loan scheme for heating bills is a ridiculous waste of money and time. But it is delusional to think for a moment there were easy choices. There aren't.
Didn't say you were a member. But you openly support them on here...
As for their recognition of an issue, their response is always "look here we are investing £x". Which always fails at recognise the depth of the issue. Or that £x is a drop in the ocean. Or that £x solves nothing without a change of direction.
Whilst you're right that the Pandemic did egregious damage to the economy, we can't use that as an excuse. Social Security payments were unlivable before, the NHS was experiencing on the limit crises before, the cost of living was absurd in so many areas before. The *structural* crisis - that the economy doesn't provide a viable income for so many people working flat out - has been around for ages.
The only way we are going to change this is to vote them out. If its not your party are you prepared to vote for whichever party is best positioned in your constituency to remove them from office?
This is a regular reminder that those on benefits in the UK are in the top 10% of incomes worldwide. We achieve this because we actually have a very successful economy that produces considerable quantities of wealth for distribution.
Your posts are, with respect, verging on the hysterical. There is room for both debate and action on whether incomes are distributed fairly. There is every right to criticise the priorities of this government or indeed any government. Things can indeed be better. But we are fortunate to live in a free, democratic, prosperous country where the rule of law is rigorously applied by an independent judiciary. You make good points which I often agree with but you do so in apocalyptic terms which are unnecessary.
Disingenuous David and old Tory trick. In the developed world out benefits are pathetic and thinking we are stupid enough to believe the cost of living In the poor countries you compare us to makes the benefits a windfall is beneath you. If you compare reality in is the very bottom of the pile. Just compare Irish pensions with UK as an example.
Google photos of Musk with friends who are in prison, and that might give you a hint.
However, I think it is more likely that he just wants to mess with the stock price.
Musk is as dodgy as f**k. There is much to admire about the man, but also much that throws off warning signals.
It is funny that it appears that Twitter - that well known bastion of corporate goodness - appears to have rejected him.
Twitter have, I think, a "last platform standing" strategy for comms. They are betting on Facebook imploding before they do, and becoming "critical infrastructure". No-one would ever admit to that, though.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not sure there was actually much he *could* have done. But he should have been upfront rather than wasting money on meaningless gestures
He could have rated benefits by the 8% that is actual inflation figure now rather than the 3% back in September.
At least it would be a start.
Martin Lewis is predicting civil disorder and I believe he is correct.
Martin Lewis specialises in a dodgy if not quite illegal looking credit card trick, and gas bills. That's it. He thoroughly embarrassed himself on radio a bit ago by not having a clue how pensions work, so I wouldn't give his sociological musings too much weight.
Why are you assuming they are friends? Wouldn’t an enemy lie to the press to make their attack more damaging?
Surely the fact that he clung on to a Green Card so long shows that this is essentially correct?
He will not be an MP in a max of five years as I have said before.
How strong are the Lib Dems in North Yorkshire?
The town where I’m planning to stay tonight, Banyuls-Sur-Mer, is twinned with Settle in North Yorkshire. I doubt my visit will give me any further insight into the popularity of the Lib Dems..
Is that the southernmost town in France?
Very nearly.. Just beaten by Cerbère, which is basically a big railway station right on the border.
Apparently the area containing both is called La Côte Vermeille (the Vermillion Coast). Will the sand be red?
I've never been down to that little corner. I expect a full report!
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Melenchon is strongly Eurosceptic. So, I certainly hope he wins in 2027.
Melenchon said do not vote for Le Pen. Not a single vote.
He did not say vote for Macron. He did not say do all you can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President.
Yes, the problem with his message is that it gives the option of abstention. I think he'll come under pressure to explicitly endorse Macron - hell, if the Communists and Trotskyists can do it, he should be able to.
In return, I think we should see his movement doing pretty well in the forthcoming Parliamentary (Assembly) elections. But not if he's let Le Pen through.
I think it depends on the polls . If things look too close I agree he would be under huge pressure to endorse Macron .
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
It was a very strong result - and totally missed by all the pollsters, who also underestimated Macron’s support.
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Melenchon is strongly Eurosceptic. So, I certainly hope he wins in 2027.
Melenchon said do not vote for Le Pen. Not a single vote.
He did not say vote for Macron. He did not say do all you can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President.
Yes, the problem with his message is that it gives the option of abstention. I think he'll come under pressure to explicitly endorse Macron - hell, if the Communists and Trotskyists can do it, he should be able to.
In return, I think we should see his movement doing pretty well in the forthcoming Parliamentary (Assembly) elections. But not if he's let Le Pen through.
I agree. The French left needs to work together (obviously), but if Melenchon is seen as a gateway to Le Pen that clearly cannot happen.
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Worse than doing nothing, your party deny there is a crisis at all. Why do something to fix something that doesn't exist? This is Boris - boosterism is all he knows. So no, not the highest peacetime taxes, not an inflation bomb, not a brutal tax rise, not a fuel and food price crisis. No no, the real issue is chicks with dicks on Channel 4.
You post with an anti HMG agenda which is absolutely fair and understandable, but as we are where we are just how would you deal with the cost of living crisis
It is a genuine question as I am interested in alternatives to HMG
As I have posted repeatedly there are massive structural problems. Jobs that do not pay enough wages and do not guarantee hours. Housing costs that are unaffordable unless you have a large deposit which you can't possibly save for. A social security safety net that makes people so indebted that recovery is almost impossible.
There are no quick and simple solutions. But the starter for 10 has to be recognising the issue exists at all. The Tories deny it - they even celebrate the rise of foodbacks as if working people reliant on charity is a Good Thing. Labour don't want to address it - they're also stuck at the micro instead of looking at the macro. But at least they don't enjoy kicking people like the Tories do. So its a start.
You have not even attempted to answer the question other than to say kick out Tories
I assume the reason is it is almost insoluble no matter which party is in charge
It's not insoluble, but it's insoluble in our current economic situation without using methods that create greater long term problems.
Bluntly, unless we can find ways to raise economic output substantially without increasing the labour force, so there is more money to go round, more tax coming in and the national debt is reduced as a portion of income so becomes more affordable, it can't be done.
But that's something nobody is willing to do as it is in itself quite costly and also requires us to work harder at a time when many workers are already feeling the strain.
I mean, I'm part of the problem from that point of view I suppose. I'm looking to go part time. But if everyone did that, our tax structure is buggered.
If I worked more hours, that might reduce staffing needs and help our economy/tax structure - plus given I'm reducing hours on medical advice due to overwork, so it would save my pension because I would likely be dead before I'm 60 - but from a personal POV it would not be the right solution.
And that's true for most people.
There's plenty of money out there to pay off the national debt; much of it is stashed in the offshore accounts of the super-rich.
Why do we chase ever-increasing 'living-standards' rather than happiness? What is wrong with the country as a whole choosing to do what you are doing, and I have done, as individuals - trading income for time?
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
I'm not surprised RP Isn't a neutral observer. He's trying to import stuff into the UK through this chaos. Of course he isn't a neutral observer. He's a critical, and well-informed, one. I'd be surprised if he has any hair left.
You can be well informed, or neutral - both seems a stretch. I'm not sure Big_G is either on this.
Worth noting that I am not a FBPE ultra. Leaving the EU has not caused this. What we chose to do after leaving the single market and customs union is what caused this. I advocate merely the removal of false trade barriers and the return to Thatcherite free trade.
If we agree to align with EU standards on trade (easy, apparently) does that affect our ability to do trade deals elsewhere? If not then it ought to be a no brainer. But there must be some benefit to wanting 3rd party status?
FPT: RCS "things that I have lost money on, number 37 - assuming the French would be rational and allow drilling."
Directional drilling, surely? If those multi-million pound houses on Sandbanks can be shielded from a large drilling operation on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, surely it is not beyond the ingenuity of the French to extract billions of barrels that aren't being bought from Russia?
Pull your bloody finger out, France....
Raping the earth is not the way to build a better future.
And don't call us when you need medical help.
I waited 7 hours in A&E last week.
In Thailand I'd have waited 5 minutes. And received better treatment.
You know what you can do then… you’d like it there, lots of Russian spoken.
My experience of 3rd world medicine confirms the 5 minute wait. It is achieved by jumping a queue of about 350 because you're paying usd, and white
In Peru it took 5 minutes for a doctor speaking both English and Spanish to arrive at my bedside. Then again, I was in a 5* hotel in Midflores. They have an arrangement with the 24 hour clinic for the ultra rich next door. The doctor personally went to fill the prescription.
I have also been to the hospitals that the lower middle class in Peru use. Not quite that level of service. The free hospitals that do something for the poor are something again. My relatives are adamant that they should be avoided….
On Koh Samui, Thailand, my daughter was staggered by the niceness of the hospital (she had a minor injury and was getting checked out).
All gleaming modernity and empty, pretty much
I pointed to the numbers on the bill (all on insurance, but even so), and gave her some homework on the average wage on the island vs the cost. She likes to be socially aware and it was a good practical example of such things
I lost a filling at Heathrow and had it fixed in Goa (where I was headed anyway). Never seen anything as hi tek as the dentist's surgery there, they are geared up for implant tourism.
never been to the dr in Africa which says something for my constitution given the amount I have travelled on the cheap there. India, very much produce the greenbacks and see the queue evaporate
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
P&O still have no Dover/Calais services running. What a shambles.
The head of UK ports in apologising for the delays affirmed the cause at Dover is the loss of P & O ferries but also poor weather in the channel
He said the rest of UK ports are operating at 92% but of course some will be wanting to blame brexit
Can I ask when this quote was given? Because the evidence of eyes and ears demonstrates it to be false. "Loss of P&O ferries". Its true that ferry capacity has been reduced. But ships are leaving half empty - trucks cannot get through customs. So the bottleneck is not the P&O issue. "poor weather in the channel" - all you need to do is check the weather forecast today and any day you like last week. There is no poor weather.
The issue is the collapse of the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, where the computer system which HMRC told your government 6 years ago could not cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions has failed because it can't cope with the number of post-Brexit transactions. We have suspended making any inbound checks - trucks are waved through. But outbound we need to show paperwork for the French in that oven-ready deal we insisted on implementing. So without a working computer its manual checks.
Remember that there is no room to park trucks at Dover. So even when GVMS and CHIEF were working the time taken forces trucks to be stacked elsewhere and paperwork to be examined at various pre-channel locations. So even the best case scenario will have queues forever. When the system fails its entirely manual, which creates this chaos.
"Its the fault of P&O" is a demonstrable lie. "Its the fault of poor weather" is a demonstrable lie. You are being spun. You are a smarter man than just believe the lies fed to you in easily digestible portions. DFDS - the people running the ferries - have confirmed their boats are departing half full. So either DFDS are lying about their own business or your quote from UK Ports was a joke at the time and is utterly discredited now.
He commented on 5 live last week and you are clearly suggesting the head of UK ports is lying to the public
I would suggest he knows this subject and you are to be fair hardly a neutral observer
I'm not surprised RP Isn't a neutral observer. He's trying to import stuff into the UK through this chaos. Of course he isn't a neutral observer. He's a critical, and well-informed, one. I'd be surprised if he has any hair left.
You can be well informed, or neutral - both seems a stretch. I'm not sure Big_G is either on this.
Worth noting that I am not a FBPE ultra. Leaving the EU has not caused this. What we chose to do after leaving the single market and customs union is what caused this. I advocate merely the removal of false trade barriers and the return to Thatcherite free trade.
If we agree to align with EU standards on trade (easy, apparently) does that affect our ability to do trade deals elsewhere? If not then it ought to be a no brainer. But there must be some benefit to wanting 3rd party status?
The big question is the value of alignment with the EU v the value of othervtrade deals. The evidence points very strongly in favour of the former.
Haven't fully grokked quordle. did it first time yesterday and was surprised by the boringness of the solutions. Wordle words tend to be interesting, we've had nymph and foray recently.
The one concern I have about the French election now is that the final result will be decided by people whose British equivalents believe that there is no difference between the Tories and Labour.
Congratulations to Melenchon fantastic result.
Losing?
22% and 7.6m votes is definitely a good result for a far left agenda.
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Had the French left unified around a single candidate they could have beaten Le Pen. The collapse in mainstream French politics on both left and right has been amazing.
It speaks to a deeply unhappy country which feels lost.
Can you name a country that doesn't feel that way at the moment? Serious question.
Norway ?
Bet all Nordic countries
Yes, Switzerland seems in good shape too - the Swiss press currently pondering a one-seat shift from centre-left to centre-right in one canton as the big domestic issue of the day - rather like PB on a quiet day, speculating on the meaning of a town council election in South Shields.
Going outside Europe - Vietnam? China, when not locked down? Even India? Also, I'm struck by the absence of horror stories from Africa recently (Libya, Ethiopia and Chad excepted) - are some of the current governments quietly getting on with making a relative success of things?
Whilst I hate the word "benefits" and all it implies, the article nails to the floor just how broken both the economy is and our politics. Working people should not need to reply on foodbanks, yet for so many Tories this is something to be celebrated.
This is why I was so disappointed with Sunak's mini budget (and indeed Labour's response which barely touched on the point). The cost of living crisis is always the worst for the poorest and he did absolutely nothing to help them when faced with a doubling of heating costs. It was wrong.
Honestly, I’m not sure there was actually much he *could* have done. But he should have been upfront rather than wasting money on meaningless gestures
He could have rated benefits by the 8% that is actual inflation figure now rather than the 3% back in September.
At least it would be a start.
Martin Lewis is predicting civil disorder and I believe he is correct.
Martin Lewis specialises in a dodgy if not quite illegal looking credit card trick, and gas bills. That's it. He thoroughly embarrassed himself on radio a bit ago by not having a clue how pensions work, so I wouldn't give his sociological musings too much weight.
...dodgy if not quite illegal....
Is someone quoting the possible Tory party manifesto for 2024?
Comments
Before you are too insulting to his supporters remember without them voting Macron in a fortnight he loses to Le Pen.
Sky also saying Irish truckers protesting at fuel prices are affecting the port of Dublin
Her starting position is much better than last time and the background to the vote in 2022 is markedly different to 2017 .
The surprise would be if she polled less than 40% this time .
That's the theory
He will not be an MP in a max of five years as I have said before.
'Urgent' is probably the wrong term for what would need to be a strategic plan - if would require large government incentives over at least a decade to get manufacturers to commit to the UK. Building a domestic industry from scratch would take even longer.
But that requires investment in people and machines, and in the UK there is easier money to be had buying and selling houses.
Melenchon did do a but better, albeit still not enough to reach the runoff. He squeezed the Green Party candidate Jadot's vote in particular.
Macron is clear favourite to win the runoff now. Almost all the main eliminated candidates have now endorsed him, Melenchon, Pecresse and Jadot. The only exception is Zemmour who has endorsed Le Pen.
To win Le Pen will need to hope she at least splits the Melenchon vote equally with Macron with the rest abstaining. She would also hope to pick up some Pecresse voters
I very much hope Melenchon’s voters heed his words and do all they can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President. I think most will.
If that is the case, the left Melenchon represents has a real chance of fighting for the presidency in 2027, when Macron cannot stand. First stop is an alliance with the Greens.
Can I pull you back to reality for a moment?
You said there is a lack of capacity to move trucks. This is false. Ships are leaving half empty
You said there has been poor weather. This is untrue. The weather has been fine and ships have been sailing without weather cancellations.
If you want to hide behind what you are being fed that is fine. But with respect to me not being a neutral observer I am reporting detailed facts. Evidenced facts. I am leaving it up to you to draw conclusions from it. But not reporting the failure of GVMS is not reporting the news correctly. Not highlighting the half-empty ships the same. The lack of French queues the same.
It also needs serious supply-side reforms, in particular deregulation, lower taxes and lower government spending, which neither party shows any wish for.
But if we want to be a high-wage, high productivity economy, it's what we need to do.
At least it would be a start.
Martin Lewis is predicting civil disorder and I believe he is correct.
I'm not sure Big_G is either on this.
https://twitter.com/paraga/status/1513354622466867201?t=gFtMiH22PTkkQEzrmSXcUg&s=19
There are of course parallels. Biggest party over 500k members, inspires young voters with a radical agenda.
Passes off liberal elite Centrists like
Roger.
What's not to like!!
Now, you may well be right in all that you say about the failure of GVMS, and of the Dover/Calais route being able to cope with current traffic levels without any P&O services, had it not been for Brexit. But that's a more complicated story. Our media struggles often to get simple stories right. What chance have they got with a more complicated one?
However your earlier post calling them left wing nutters or whatever phrase you used is not what I would recommend to Macron
I do keep coming back to Thatcher though. However brutal some of her economic policies were there was a clear plan, a destination being aimed at, and substantial compared to today support in place for the people who were left behind on the journey.
We need another Thatcher - not the same economic solution as then, but the same analysis and clear "this is what we need to do" solution. A start is what kind of society do we want to be? One that forces working people to rely on handouts cannot be one the majority will accept if you strip policy away and ask about right and wrong. So we need to make work pay. Which means we need to make productivity rise. Which means we need to make people happy and productive at work. Which means we need to stop treating employees like automaton slave units. Which means we need to make companies work for their tax cuts. Etc etc etc.
It all starts with "who do we want to be". And that is why removing the Tories is the first step. Because you can't look at the problems and plan a solution when the PM is a crook and the Chancellor is tax efficient and the culture secretary wants war against trans people.
However, I think it is more likely that he just wants to mess with the stock price.
I have also been to the hospitals that the lower middle class in Peru use. Not quite that level of service. The free hospitals that do something for the poor are something again. My relatives are adamant that they should be avoided….
On Koh Samui, Thailand, my daughter was staggered by the niceness of the hospital (she had a minor injury and was getting checked out).
All gleaming modernity and empty, pretty much
I pointed to the numbers on the bill (all on insurance, but even so), and gave her some homework on the average wage on the island vs the cost. She likes to be socially aware and it was a good practical example of such things
Have a good morning.
Apparently the area containing both is called La Côte Vermeille (the Vermillion Coast). Will the sand be red?
Child benefits are already very generous in France .
FI might be better off with a cleanskin in 2027. Maybe Panot.
Unless they are as politically naive as….oh…wait a sec 😉
It is funny that it appears that Twitter - that well known bastion of corporate goodness - appears to have rejected him.
More generally, I reckon it’s important to wait until the Assembly elections before making any definitive judgements about where French politics and society is heading. My guess is that the Socialists, the Greens and the mainstream right will all do a lot better than their presidential candidates, while the Macron, Melenchon and Le Pen parties will all do worse.
The test for each of the latter three is to survive the departure of the current leader without imploding or fracturing.
Our Brexit deal requires customs paperwork as we are at our own request a 3rd country to the EU
We process that paperwork through the Goods Vehicle Movement System
This has broken
HMRC told this government that the ageing customs computer (CHIEF) couldn't cope with the number of transactions post-Brexit as a 3rd country. 6 years later that same computer hasn't been replaced and has failed
Because the computer is broken checks have to be done manually. This takes a long time which creates a backlog of trucks who cannot be processed through Dover or the Tunnel
Despite the P&O debacle there is no shortage of space for the few trucks that make it out of the M20. Trucks are reported leaving half-empty, with the boss of DFDS placing the blame squarely on the inability to process paperwork manually
HMRC say they are working on a fix and expect the computer to make a phased return to service this week
The government say they have invested £lots in a new computer system which will come on line later this year
I's not that difficult. The lie is far harder:
There is a lack of capacity - but ships are half full
There is poor weather - but ships are sailing normally
This impacts both sides - but no queues in France
Its because its Easter - bit this started weeks ago
Yeah we can't drive from our homes to our jobs because of gridlock but its definitely not caused by Brexit.
Melenchon said do not vote for Le Pen. Not a single vote.
He did not say vote for Macron. He did not say do all you can to prevent the far-right candidate becoming President.
The fundamental mistake people are making is that government can’t protect us from everything that happens in the world
In return, I think we should see his movement doing pretty well in the forthcoming Parliamentary (Assembly) elections. But not if he's let Le Pen through.
One of those words is more suited to sweardle!
It is quite impressive how often the one massive contract for the whole country thing ends up more expensive and worse quality.
And then you can’t change suppliers because the one big buy is contingent, often, on only going through that supplier….
That gap is going to keep widening and with the economy growth now slowing, the economy is going to kill them
Why do we chase ever-increasing 'living-standards' rather than happiness? What is wrong with the country as a whole choosing to do what you are doing, and I have done, as individuals - trading income for time?
never been to the dr in Africa which says something for my constitution given the amount I have travelled on the cheap there. India, very much produce the greenbacks and see the queue evaporate
Local authorities block contracting for houses. Landlord gets guaranteed payments; local authorities gets more flexibility on housing and lower rents.
At the moment they just ask an estate agent for the rent range in the area and put it in the bottom third.
Going outside Europe - Vietnam? China, when not locked down? Even India? Also, I'm struck by the absence of horror stories from Africa recently (Libya, Ethiopia and Chad excepted) - are some of the current governments quietly getting on with making a relative success of things?
Is someone quoting the possible Tory party manifesto for 2024?